10,000 gallons of oil spill on Los Angeles streets

LOS ANGELES — Crews sopped up the remains of about 10,000 gallons of crude oil that sprayed into Los Angeles streets and onto buildings early Thursday after a high-pressure pipe burst.

A geyser of crude spewed 20 feet high over approximately half a mile at about 12:15 a.m. and was knee-high in some parts of the industrial area of Atwater Village before the oil line was remotely shut off, said Fire Capt. Jaime Moore.

A handful of commercial businesses near the border of Glendale was affected, as well as a strip club that was evacuated.

Firefighters and hazardous materials crews responded. Several roads were closed.

Four people at a medical business were evaluated with respiratory complaints, and two people were transferred to a hospital, Moore said.

By dawn, an environmental cleaning company had vacuumed up most of the oil. Crews put down absorbent material to sop up the remaining crude and then used high-pressure hoses to wash the streets with a soap solution.

Officials previously said 50,000 gallons had spilled but that number was revised downward after the vacuuming began.

Read tomorrow's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.

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