Las Vegas Sun

November 16, 2009

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Chemical spill backs up traffic for hours

Saturday, Sept. 6, 1997 | 9:20 a.m.

Fifteen bags of lime spilled onto the roadway Friday when a commercial vehicle carrying the 50-pound bags lost part of its load.

The bags of the powdery substance were not a threat to human health, said David Faircloth, operations manager of Environmental Technologies of Nevada Inc.

"Today's spill was only (about) 10 bags, but it goes a long way. It's like a flour bag: you drop that on your kitchen floor and see how far it goes. Lime if real fine, it's real powdery," he said.

Lime, an additive used in cement, causes eye irritation and difficulty in breathing, and when mixed with water or some other moist solution, it becomes corrosive, he said.

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