Hyannis truck driver charged in connection with Brewster oil spill

Sarah Carlon, Cape Cod Times
·2 min read

BREWSTER — A Hyannis man has been charged in connection with a June 24 oil truck spill in Brewster, authorities said.

Richard McLean, 41, was driving the truck that spilled about 2,400 gallons of oil onto Route 137 in Brewster on June 24, Brewster Police Chief Heath Eldredge said.

McLean was involved in another crash right before the spill, where he failed to negotiate a stop sign and struck a guardrail and a small pine tree near Freeman's Way on Route 137.

McLean was charged with a hit-and-run and leaving the scene of property damage for the initial crash, Eldredge said.

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The cause of the second crash is still under investigation, he said, and McLean has not been charged with anything pertaining to it.

Cleanup efforts continue

Cleanup of the site has been underway since the day of the crash. On-site responders stayed until 3:30 a.m. and vacuumed about 950 gallons of the oil.

The cleanup is a joint-effort between the Brewster Department of Public Works and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.

Brewster Department of Public Works sawhorses and cones block off the site of a June 24 oil truck crash on Route 137 that spilled about 2,400 gallons of oil onto the road and surrounding area.
Brewster Department of Public Works sawhorses and cones block off the site of a June 24 oil truck crash on Route 137 that spilled about 2,400 gallons of oil onto the road and surrounding area.

Oil spills of more than 10 gallons must be reported immediately to the state, DEP spokesperson Ed Coletta said.

The spill is initially mitigated on-site by the local fire department. A licensed site professional — an environmental consultant that assesses the spill — tests the area and comes up with a plan to clean the oil.

Mass DEP maintains constant contact and requires regular reports from the site professional during the cleanup process, Coletta said.

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Brewster Fire Chief Robert Moran said the site professional leading the cleanup is scheduled to have laboratory results from the tested soil in the next few days, providing officials with guidance for required remediation.

"The lab results are really needed to take the next steps," he said.

Meanwhile, the area had been secured to make it safe for Route 137 drivers, Moran said.

Sarah Carlon can be contacted: scarlon@capecodonline.com or on Twitter: @sarcarlon

This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Hyannis man charged in connection with Brewster oil spill