Fertilizer spill shuts down North Bend’s Exit 34

A liquid fertilizer spill closed part of Interstate 90's Exit 34 at North Bend for more than an hour Tuesday morning, June 22.

A liquid fertilizer spill closed part of Interstate 90’s Exit 34 at North Bend for more than an hour Tuesday morning, June 22.

North Bend firefighters with Eastside Fire and Rescue and state clean-up crews responded to the spill about 9:30 a.m. at the eastbound off-ramp in North Bend.

A semi-truck carrying several 500 gallon plastic containers of liquid fertilizer was exiting the highway when the driver reported losing his brakes and clipping the semi-truck in front of him. As he turned the corner at the off-ramp, one of the plastic containers was thrown from the flatbed truck and spilled onto the road.

Washington State Patrol, the Washington Department of Ecology and the Department of Transportation were called to the scene of the spill. Fire crews worked with state troopers to set-up traffic cones and divert traffic coming through the area. The exit was blocked and closed for about an hour and a half while crews sanded the spill. No injuries were reported.