LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON - A vehicle collision is responsible for a fuel spill that spread approximately 700 litres of home heating fuel across the driveway and backyard of a Fort Simpson residence on Oct. 26.

Absorbent pads soak up some of the 700 litres of home heating fuel beside a residence in Fort Simpson that was spilled after a vehicle backed into a fuel tank on Oct. 26. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

At approximately 8:10 a.m. on Monday a van backed into the fuel tank of a residence on 103 Avenue. As a result of the collision, the fuel tank tipped over sideways, severing the supply line to the house and releasing the fuel.

After the collision the vehicle left the scene of the accident, according to a press release from the Fort Simpson RCMP detachment. By that afternoon suspects had been identified and charges were pending.

The Fort Simpson Housing Authority, which manages the property, took charge of the clean-up. The authority's staff were alerted shortly after 8 a.m. and inspected the damage in the area which included checking to see if any fuel had seeped under the house, said Sandy Kidd, the organization's maintenance foreman.

After the RCMP conducted its investigation housing corp staff laid down absorbent pads to soak up some of the heating fuel and reported the spill to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. By 9:30 staff were using buckets to scoop up the fuel that had pooled on the ground, said Kidd.

Kidd estimates approximately 300 litres of fuel was removed by hand. The fuel tank, which can hold 1,000 litres when full, contained approximately 700 liters at the time of the accident, said Kidd.

Resident Darren Hazenberg had concerns about the spill and the timeliness of the clean-up. Speaking just before noon, Hazenberg, whose backyard adjoins the property, said the site should have been dug up already.

The soil isn't completely frozen and some of the fuel must be leaking into the ground. It should have been dug up immediately, said Hazenberg. A number of children live in the neighbourhood, he added.

However, Kidd said the authority conducted the clean-up in a timely manner, adding soil removal began after lunch. She said before the soil could be removed the authority had to obtain permission to take it somewhere else, he said.

"The ground is pretty frozen so not much of it soaked in," said Kidd.

Speaking on Tuesday morning Kidd said the authority would be removing a total of approximately four dump trucks of soil from the laneway and backyard of the house. Two truck loads would have been sufficient but the authority wanted to be safe and ensure the smell of fuel doesn't stay in the area, he said.

The contaminated soil is being deposited in a lined area at the local landfill. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources is overseeing the clean-up.

"There're no threats or immediate hazards," said Ken Lambert, the regional environmental protection officer for the department.