By Jon King / jking@whmi.com


Local and state officials say that a fuel spill in the Brighton Mill Pond earlier this week was quickly contained and should be cleaned up by early next week.

The incident occurred early Tuesday morning when approximately 1,200 gallons of diesel fuel spilled at Corrigan Oil’s facility on Second Street. While about a thousand gallons were contained on-site, it’s believed that approximately 200 gallons made it into the 2nd Street storm drain and from there into the Mill Pond.

Hugh McDiarmid Jr., the Communications Manager for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes & Energy (EGLE), said Corrigan Oil reported the spill was the result of a separated coupling. McDiarmid says the drains were cleared and booms deployed immediately after the spill, with a larger skimmer deployed Thursday by cleanup contractors (pictured). He says that they will continue to work through the weekend to clear the site, with the expectation of cleanup ending Monday or Tuesday and that EGLE continues to investigate the circumstances.

A press release states that since the time of the spill, Corrigan Oil employed a 24/7 drone system to monitor the conditions, among other measures. It says notable improvements in the affected areas have been observed. Officials say "Corrigan Oil is committed to the various mitigation strategies and the clean-up effort to restore the affected area to its pre-existing condition, if not improve the environmental health of the area. This includes continued close coordination with our contracted experts and governmental authorities".

Brighton City Manager Nate Geinzer says that the city has been kept in the loop and credited Corrigan with putting the “right resources and people on site,” adding that he has been “very pleased with their response. I could not have asked for more.” Geinzer noted that Corrigan will pay the full cost of the cleanup, which he agreed should be completed by early next week.

Geinzer said they were lucky the weather helped them, with winds keeping the spill contained near the northern end of the Mill Pond, while the warm and sunny weather helped to evaporate some of the fuel. He also said that because diesel fuel is lighter than most other fuels that also assisted in helping to clean it up.

The press release issued by Corrigan is attached.