Creek in West L.A. Dammed in Attempt to Contain Oil Spill
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Three portable dams were put into Ballona Creek in West Los Angeles Sunday night in an attempt to contain about 3,000 gallons of diesel fuel that spilled into the channel after a tanker truck overturned on the San Diego Freeway.
The dams, also known as booms, were placed in the channel to prevent the fuel from reaching the Pacific about 2 1/2 miles from where the accident occurred early Sunday morning, Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer David Daily said.
A tanker truck carrying about 6,000 gallons of fuel from Bakersfield went out of control on the southbound San Diego Freeway near Sunset Boulevard, hit a guard rail and overturned, the California Highway Patrol said.
About half of the truck’s load spilled out and made its way to the nearby Ballona Creek channel, where it was first noticed about noon Sunday by state authorities.
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