Originally published by Telegram & Gazette
STERLING — Fire crews spent ten hours neutralizing a nitric acid spill inside the trailer of a truck that was making deliveries to Rafferty Aluminum & Steel Co., Inc., at 1 Spratt Technology Way Tuesday.
Fire Department Public Information Officer Jim Emerton said the call for the hazardous materials incident came in just after 9 a.m. when the driver of the truck noticed leaking from two 55 gallon barrels.
Because the barrels were in the center of the trailer, much of the other freight had to be unloaded before the leak could be addressed, Emerton said.
Initially, officials called for a Tier 2 response which brought state crews in to assist firefighters from Sterling, Princeton and Clinton. As the need for manpower increased, the level was raised to a Tier 3, bringing more personal in to help with the labor-intensive situation, Emerton said.
The nitric acid is a “corrosive oxidizer” and would produce dangerous fumes so another business was evacuated, Emerton said, adding that there was no danger of an explosion and the scene was on a dead end road so traffic was not impacted.
Crews used sodium bicarbonate to neutralize the acid, Emerton said. There were concerns about the structure of the trailer after it was exposed to the chemical, as well.
Firefighters turned over the scene to a clean up crew just before 7:15 p.m., Emerton said.
Firefighters from Holden and Lancaster were on standby at the Sterling station much of the day. A canteen truck from Leominster and Fitchburg provided food and facilities for the firefighters
