ICBC plans to sue those responsible for Trail acid spills to recover claim costs
Dozens of cars were written off after pair of spills near Trail, B.C., this spring
The Insurance Corporation of B.C. says it plans to sue those responsible for a pair of acid spills on a main highway near Trail, B.C., to recover the costs of repairing thousands of damaged vehicles.
Two tanker trucks spilled a little less than 300 litres of sulphuric acid in and around Trail on two separate days in April and May. The first spill left a 16-kilometre smear of acid along Highway 3B that nearly reached the U.S. border.
The second spill was six kilometres in length along the same stretch of road.
A third, smaller spill of sulphuric acid occurred on Saturday, but it's not yet clear whether any damage associated with that spill has been reported.
By September, ICBC said it was working through around 2,500 insurance claims from drivers whose cars were wrecked when they drove over the acid.
Among dozens of reported writeoffs were the City of Trail's year-old fire truck and a fire command vehicle, worth a combined $1 million.
'Work has already begun'
The transport trucks that leaked had just left the Teck smelter in Trail. Fault for the spills has yet to be determined.
In a statement on Tuesday, the provincial insurer said it will be taking legal action to recover what will be "significant" costs of covering claims.
"This work has already begun. ICBC is in the process of determining who is at fault and will sue those parties in due course," it read.
On Sept. 6, Teck said it — along with Westcan Bulk Transport, and emergency services — promptly responded to the spills.
The mining company said lime rock was used to neutralize the acid. Highway 3B was flushed with water, drains were covered and tests were conducted to confirm the acid was no longer a threat.
Teck said the acid from both spills was neutralized within hours while the road was closed to traffic.
With files from Bob Keating