Efforts to contain diesel fuel spill in river continuing

MILFORD – Containment of a weekend oil spill on the Souhegan River continued Monday.

About 1,525 gallons of diesel fuel leaked Sunday from Snack Corner, a Mobil station at 41 Elm St. Now, at least some of it is in the Souhegan River.

Apparently, the diesel escaped into a culvert that carries storm water across the street and into the Souhegan, officials said.

On Monday, workers from Clean Harbors Comprehensive Services worked through the night to contain the spill, according to Milford Fire Department.

They were still on scene as of Monday afternoon.

Workers at the culvert declined to comment on what they were doing.

State Department of Environmental Services spokesman Jim Martin said the diesel tank’s owners, Draper Energy, hired the company to deal with the spill.

According to Draper Energy’s answering machine message, the company merged with Energy North Group of Tewksbury Mass.

Employees at Energy North declined to comment when reached by phone.

As of Monday, no fish kills were reported, Martin said.

The environmental impact will be hard to determine, he said.

But the good news is water levels at the river were running high, Martin said, meaning that the relatively strong current will mitigate the damage because the diesel will be dispersed quickly.

According to the Milford Fire Department, several people called Milford Area Communication Center around 1 p.m. Sunday to report the oil slicks in the river.

In response, firefighters located the source of the spill and put absorbent booms into the river to contain the diesel.

Other firefighters determined the spill had spread to Amherst.

Emergency crews from Amherst, and Merrimack, along with Nashua’s Souhegan Mutual Aid Response Team – a team of firefighters that assists regional communities with events involving hazardous materials, responded to the Severins Bridge Road area to put out absorbent booms.

Milford firefighters also put a boom on the river near the wastewater treatment center on Nashua Street.

The cause of the leak was still under investigation as of Monday, Fire Chief Frank Fraitzl said Monday morning.