The New Brunswick government has set up a special car wash for people who drove through a chemical spill on the Vanier Highway in Fredericton between Wednesday evening and Friday at 4 p.m. AT, but some residents are questioning why it took so long for the province to take action.
Late Friday, the province announced that the spill contained chromium and people should avoid touching it, or washing vehicles coated in the yellow liquid.
People affected by the spill may have driven eastbound or westbound on the Vanier Highway (also known as Highway 7) between Fredericton and Oromocto or driven on Vanier Industrial Drive.
The car wash is set up off Alison Boulevard, near the ramp to the eastbound lane on Highway 7, and will be in place Sunday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. AT. It was also open Saturday and set to close at 6 p.m., but there were long lines at 5:40 p.m. Workers are wearing special protective gear to reduce exposure.
For those who already washed their vehicles and have yellow residue in their driveway or garage, the province is advising people to contact EFI Global on their emergency spill line at 1-866-530-4086.
Jenna Martin drove through the spill Wednesday. When she parked her car later that night, she noticed it was stained yellow. But it wasn’t until the government issued a news release on Friday that she found out why.
“There wasn’t enough information, nor was it provided in a timely manner,” she said.
Public Health advised residents to avoid touching residue on their vehicles and to keep children and pets away from it as well. Authorities said people should wash their hands for 15 minutes if they have touched the vehicle or other affected surfaces.
But it was too late for Martin.
“Thinking back, I touched it, I’ve cleaned it. Now what am I supposed to do,” she said.
Martin said she is worried her dog and children may have been exposed to the residue.
“Is it satisfactory going to a car wash to get that cleaned? Or is that going to be damaging to our waterways, the sewer system, the environment, is it dangerous to my pets and children?” she said.
Martin said the residue has also dripped onto the road and remains on her car even after going through a car wash.
Martina Price said she would have avoided the highway if the situation had been publicized sooner.
She drove through the affected area on Friday afternoon with a friend and her two children.
“We were touching that car all afternoon into the evening,” Price said.
“I was out there getting stuff out of the car, the dogs were out there like crazy, we didn’t know any of this, so it was already too late by that point I was already rubbing my eyes,” she said.
She is also concerned about other roads possibly being contaminated due to vehicles driving through the spill.
“I would really like them to consider putting alert ready messages [out] for chemical environmental spills like this,” said Price.
A news release issued late Saturday afternoon by the province said that health risks remain low if people did not come into direct contact with the chemicals and do not have residue on their vehicle.
“A onetime or short contact with hexavalent chromium does not increase your cancer risk,” it said.
The province also said it has confirmed Fredericton’s water supply is not affected.
The city directed all questions to the province.
The province did not provide an interview on the subject, nor did it respond to questions about the cause of the spill.
