News
Thursday, 25 February 2010 06:27
 On Saturday 20 February 2010, Spilltech Hazmat Response Team was called out at 04h00 to respond to a vehicle accident on Edwin Swales in Durban, South Africa.
The truck had attempted to perform a u-turn. During this maneuver, the load shifted which left the vehicle at a 45-degree angle. This vehicle was carrying 500 kg bags of fertilizer, which after the incident were strewn over the road.
Recovery Began The Spilltech response team immediately began with recovery of the loose product, while a specialized tow truck vehicle recovered the truck. Once the truck was recovered, a receiving vehicle was delivered to site.
Forklifts were used to lift the bulk bags onto the second vehicle. Broken fertilizer bags were placed into bigger bulk bags to ensure no further product was lost or damaged.
Once the work was completed and the road was clear, it was re-opened to the public and Spilltech Hazmat response team left site.
Sunday, 21 February 2010 04:46
 On the evening of 26 February 2010, Durban was hit by a violent electric storm and 33mm of rain fell in only three hours.
According to IOL.com, a Durban weather forecaster, Ntobeko Nkangane, said that 40,8mm of rain lashed central Durban, but he described it as a "slow, but normal rain.” A slow rain generally leads to flooding, especially when the drainage system can't cope," he said. Flooding in Many Areas or Durban This extreme level rain in such a short period of time caused flooding in many areas all over Durban. The damage could be seen the morning after as there was debris strewn all over the streets. Flood Water Extraction The Spilltech response team members were out all day doing floodwater extraction at various companies around Durban. Skimmers and spate pumps were used to ensure a quick and effective pump-out of the storm water. Although the rain has calmed, it is expected that many millimeters will fall over the next few days.
Thursday, 11 February 2010 13:35
 On 8 February 2010, a truck transporting 1.25 litre soft drink bottles as well as 340ml cans got into trouble and came off the road and went down an embankment in the Shongweni Valley, Durban in Kwa Zulu-Natal.
A part of the load was lost and then some 300m further down the road, the vehicle went off the road and into a nature reserve. The Spilltech response team worked until the early hours of the morning recovering all the crates, broken bottles, and cans. BIOZORB was Used to Absorb the Oil Spill BIOZORB was used to absorb the spilt oil and diesel on site. BIOZORB is a revolutionary oil and hydrocarbon absorbent made from premium Canadian sphagnum peat moss. BIOZORB is 100% organic and non-carcinogenic. BIOZORB has a remarkable ability to suppress vapours from volatile, flammable hydrocarbons such as petrol. By reducing petrol and similar vapours by up to 90%, risk of explosion is reduced and a hazardous spill becomes more manageable
BIOZORB itself is already in a biodegraded state and it will enhance biodegrading of the hydrocarbon encapsulated.
All contaminated absorbent and vegetation was bagged and removed from site for safe disposal at the required landfill site.
Thursday, 04 February 2010 13:52
 On 25 January 2010, a ship was bunkering fuel in the early hours of the morning in Durban harbour. Something went wrong with the lines, which caused ±4 000 lt of bunker fuel to spill into the harbor. Spilltech was contacted and responded to site immediately.
On arrival at the oil spill, two teams were set up. The Spilltech Hazmat team began applying BIOZORB to the surface of the water, while a second team set up several retention booms to prevent any of the oil spill from escaping out to sea. Spilltech Team Worked Through the Night Because this was quite a big oil spill, the Spilltech team worked through the night until all the bunker fuel was absorbed. All contaminated product was removed from site in heavy-duty bags for disposal at a registered landfill site. The site was signed off by the necessary department.
Tuesday, 26 January 2010 05:58
 On 22 January 2010, Spilltech Hazmat Response Team responded to a tanker spill on the freeway 20km outside Hluhluwe, Kwa-Zulu Natal. The driver of the tanker had lost control of the vehicle and headed straight through the barrier.
During this road traffic accident, the trailer disconnected from the horse. The horse was found ±150m further, in the grounds of a Big Five private game reserve. BIOZORB, a natural hydrocarbon absorbent 12 000 -15 000 litres of product was lost from ruptured compartments on the tanker. BIOZORB, a natural hydrocarbon absorbent, was placed all round the tanker as well as down into the veld to absorb any free phase product. A trench was dug parallel to the freeway and also filled with to prevent the product from seeping any further into the game reserve soil. Fast Tank Method Although many thousands of litres of the product were lost, there were compartments still intact. The product in these compartments was pumped out using the fast tank method. Spilltech Still Working at Site At present, Spilltech is still working closely with a geohydrologist to ensure that everything that can be done to restore the spill site is carried out. The Department of Water and Forestry have visited the site and are pleased with the progress that Spilltech Oil and Chemical Pollution Control are making.
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