RUMFORD – A barrel of red dye that spilled from a small tractor-trailer truck prompted the closure of a section of Route 232 and South Rumford Road for about 10 minutes Wednesday afternoon.
The red dye, on its way to NewPage Corp. in Rumford, for use in papermaking, was believed to be nontoxic.
Officer Paul Casey said a barrel of red dye apparently tipped over as Thomas Boisvert, 58, was driving a Con-Way Transportation Truck, of Portland, Ore., north on Route 232, then onto South Rumford Road.
Some of the dye hit pedestrian Michael Keeley, who reported the incident to the Rumford police.
Med-Care Ambulance Service and the Rumford Fire Department responded with an engine, a rescue truck and about 10 volunteers. Both ends of the road were closed temporarily, Deputy Fire Chief Scott Holmes said. The NewPage Corp. hazardous materials team was on standby at the mill but wasn’t needed.
Holmes said he will continue to research the red dye, but he believed it was nontoxic. He also planned to notify the state’s Department of Environmental Protection.
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