LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — A trash truck in Lancaster County was forced to dump its contents on the side of the road when a chemical reaction sparked a fire, authorities said Wednesday.
The incident occurred on the 200 block of Brenneman Road, according to Pequea Township Police. The New Danville Fire Company also responded to the incident.
According to police, an Econ Refuse Service truck was forced to offload its trash haul on the road to prevent the fire from spreading. The fire was quickly extinguished, and the truck was undamaged, police said.
An investigation determined that a customer on the truck's route placed a bucket of pool-cleaning chemicals in their residential trash. The chemicals reacted with other trash in the back of the truck, sparking the fire.
"We are very thankful for our friends at the New Danville Fire Co. and Pequea Township Police Department for their help this morning," Econ Refuse Service said on its Facebook page. "Earlier today, pool chemicals reacted with other trash and started a fire in the back of one of our trash trucks.
"Luckily, the driver and loader took quick action to offload the trash to keep the fire from spreading. The fire was extinguished with no damage to the truck. The burned trash was disposed of and the road was cleaned of all debris. Most importantly, no one was injured."
The refuse company and police reminded residents that household chemicals should not be put out with regular trash. Instead, the chemicals must be dropped off at the Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority's facility at 1299 Harrisburg Pike. A list of the chemicals that should be dropped off at the facility and additional information is available here.
"Also remember batteries can not be placed in residential trash," Pequea Township Police told residents. "Proper battery disposal instructions can be found here. Battery disposal bags for non-rechargeable batteries are available at no cost to township residents at the Pequea Township Municipal Building."
