Fish dead after overturned tanker fuel spill

A Lake District scene with hills and fields and, in the middle of the image, there is a road containing a number of emergency vehiclesImage source, Dave Cocks
Image caption,

The spill on the A66 in Cumbria led to travel delays over the weekend

  • Published

Fuel spilt from an overturned tanker is believed to have caused the death of a number of fish, the Environment Agency (EA) said.

A "significant" quantity of fuel was spilt on the A66 near Threlkeld in Cumbria, between the A591 at Keswick and the A5091 (Troutbeck), on Saturday morning.

The EA said 34 dead fish were discovered in nearby Naddle Beck, which it believes was caused by the pollution.

It added the impact was "minimal" and a subsequent clean-up operation had been successful.

The route had been closed for about two days for an "extensive repair and resurfacing operation", National Highways said.

There were travel delays over the weekend as people were diverted around the area.

The road reopened on Sunday night following recovery and clean-up work.

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