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Police in Fort McPherson say they are investigating the reason behind a diesel fuel tanker rollover that closed the Dempster Highway for a portion of Wednesday.
In a Thursday news release, police said officers had been called to the incident just west of the Peel River crossing at 10:11am a day earlier.
“When RCMP officers arrived on scene, they observed a commercial vehicle transporting diesel fuel overturned in the ditch,” police stated.
“Fort McPherson RCMP provided traffic control, while the NWT Department of Environment and Climate Change dispatched a team to manage the diesel fuel spill.
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“The driver sustained minor injuries and was transported to Inuvik for further medical care. Fort McPherson RCMP is continuing to investigate the cause of this accident.”
The spill is reported to be significant in size. A preliminary estimate filed with the NWT government’s spill report line puts it at 5,000 litres.
The Peel River ferry was closed for a few hours before reopening later on Wednesday.
“The Peel ferry is now open on regular schedule and Dempster Highway 8 is open to two-lane traffic,” the NWT’s Department of Infrastructure told Cabin Radio by email on Thursday afternoon.
“The fuel tanker was successfully removed from the site last night and all remaining diesel from the tanker was transferred to an empty tanker heading south.”
