The company accepting responsibility for leaving a 20-mile stretch of chicken blood on a River Valley highway will pay for any damage to motorists' vehicles and met Friday afternoon (Nov. 15) to map out a strategy for clearing up the road, a spokesman said.
Rick Johnson, spokesman for MKJ Trucking, told state officials the company is in the process of finding a street-sweeping contractor to clean up and remove the mess from the road.
The department estimates 1,200 gallons of the chicken blood spewed out of a truck carrying product as a result of a loose valve. The blood weighed 11,000 pounds.
Johnson told 5NEWS the company also will pay for any damage or cleanup expenses for motorists who drove through the blood.
A chicken truck from the Springfield, Mo.-based trucking company was transporting chicken blood from the OK Foods plant in Heavener, Okla., to a plant in Danville, when the tanker valve came open, said Thale Kiesling, district maintenance engineer for the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department.
The highway department tracked down the company Thursday after calling OK Foods about their transportation methods, Kiesling said.
Local drivers on their morning commute Wednesday encountered a stretch of blood along U.S. Highway 71 from Greenwood to Booneville.
The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality issued a statement to 5NEWS saying the agency was informed of the spill and they would request the responsible party takes measures to clean it up.
One agricultural expert said risks from the blood are minimal.
"This is just an accident like any other, and I wouldn't think it would be anything that would hurt them," said Jesse Bocksinck.
If your car received damage from the blood, the company is asking you to take a photo of the vehicle and email it to rick.johnson@thaultanklines.com.
