Barge carrying truck overturns at Great Mackerel Beach
A special hazardous materials unit attended a remote northern beaches community after four men had to be rescued when a barge ferrying a truck, which was carrying sullage, overturned on Wednesday afternoon.
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Four men had to be rescued from the water on Wednesday after a barge ferrying a truck carrying 10,000 litres of liquid waste from a remote northern beaches community overturned in Pittwater.
NSW Fire and Rescue, Rural Fire Service (RFS) and Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) were called to Great Mackerel Beach after the barge tipped over just after 1pm.
The truck had just pumped the sullage from a tank on a wharf at the remote location on the western edge of Pittwater, close to Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park.
A special hazardous materials unit from the Avalon Fire and Rescue station joined members of the RFS and RMS to place special booms around the submerged truck and the upturned barge to prevent any leakage from spreading.
A Fire and Rescue spokesman said only a small amount of diesel from the truck’s fuel tank had leaked into Pittwater.
“The truck is carrying 10,000 litres of sullage (wastewater from sinks, showers and baths), but the liquid is contained in its tank and has not leaked,” the spokesman said.
“The truck, which is submerged, contains 1500 litres of diesel and 400 litres of hydraulic fluids.”
The booms may be in place for another three days as a salvage operation gets uner way early on Thursday morning.
The four men tipped into the water were picked up by private vessels and taken to the public wharf at Palm Beach where they were met by four ambulances.
An ambulance spokesman said the men, with blankets around their shoulders, were immediately assessed.
“Three of the men were fine, but the fourth man, in his 30s, was shivering and said he had swallowed some water,” the spokesman said.
“He was taken to Northern Beaches Hospital, in a stable condition, for secondary assessment.”
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