A four-mile stretch of Highway 64 south of Akeley was blocked off early Wednesday morning after a driver carrying hydrochloric acid came over a hill and struck some cows in the road, spilling its load inside the truck bed when it shifted on impact. The highway reopened at 11 a.m.
A hazardous materials team was called in from the Moorhead Fire Department to help with the cleanup efforts. The unidentified truck driver was taken to an area hospital to be checked over, but wasn't believed to have been injured.
Hubbard County Sheriff Frank Homer said although some adjacent residents were evacuated as a precautionary measure, no dangerous fumes escaped into the dense foggy air.
Emergency personnel, state crews and law enforcement personnel were called in to set up a blockade around the area, directing traffic away from the spill.
Akeley Police Chief Eric Klein said he was paged to the area shortly after 2 a.m. Fire crews from Park Rapids and Nevis were also called out.
