A semi-truck driver hauling red dye failed to stop despite knowing the liquid was leaking onto the roadway and splashing cars for miles through the Portland area on Saturday night, authorities said.
Deputies in Multnomah County responded to reports of a tractor trailer leaking a red substance in Troutdale, a city about 16 miles outside Portland, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office said.
The driver, 40-year-old Junior Jean, told deputies the liquid was used to dye mulch, according to authorities. Deputies said Jean also claimed to have stopped to inspect the leak when another driver flagged him, but his company had told him to continue driving to his destination.
Jean had driven the truck north on I-205 then took I-84 east for several miles, spilling the liquid from the trailer along the way before exiting in Troutdale, the sheriff’s office said.
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Deputies said cars may have been splashed with the red liquid.
(Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office )
Oregon State Police and the state’s Department of Transportation confirmed the liquid also spilled throughout Clackamas County, stretching for miles on I-205 and I-84, the sheriff’s office said.
The driver claimed the red dye is soluble in water.
(Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office )
While officials said that Jean told deputies that the liquid can be washed off with water, drivers reported on the department’s Facebook page that the liquid had stained their vehicles.
The sheriff’s office said that any drivers whose vehicles remain stained after a car wash to contact the department.
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Meanwhile, Jean was issued citations for operating with sifting or leaking load, third-degree criminal mischief and reckless driving.
