Cleanup efforts underway after 1,200 gallons of diesel were spilled into Palouse River

Cleanup efforts are underway after approximately 1,200 gallons of diesel spilled into the south fork of the Palouse River on Monday in Pullman.

According to a Washington Department of Ecology news release, an above-ground fuel storage tank at Four Star Supply developed a crack and leaked the “red dye” diesel into the water.

Fuel and sheening was observed 1,000 feet downriver from the source.

Four Star Supply pumped remaining fuel from the tank, which has a 10,000-gallon capacity, and initiated nearby cleanup and protective measures when the spill was found.

The Department of Ecology is working alongside a Spokane-based cleanup response contractor to clean the river and the surrounding soil.

Red dye diesel is nontaxed fuel used on farms and is dyed red to identify it as such.

Joye Redfield-Wilder, spokeswoman for the Department of Ecology, said the cleanup could take a few days.