Portion of Edens shut down for truck leaking hazardous material, says Skokie Fire

A portion of the Edens Expressway in Skokie was partially shutdown Monday morning as local fire departments reportedly offload a truck leaking hazardous material. 

The Skokie Fire Department responded to the 8900 block of the northbound direction of the Edens Expressway around 5:54 a.m. on Monday, May 4, for a semi-truck “leaking a hazardous material,” a news release from the village fire department said. 

On arrival, fire crews reportedly found a liquid leaking from the rear of a semi-truck that was identified as liquid sodium bisulfite, an inorganic compound often used in food processing, photography and more.

There is no immediate hazard for individuals in the area, the release says.

As of 10:30 a.m., the Edens Expressway reportedly was still partially shutdown in the northbound direction as crews worked to offload the remaining liquid chemical onto another semi-truck.

The cause of the leak is still under investigation, Skokie Deputy Fire Chief Adam Pease said. Mitigation efforts will continue for a few more hours, likely into the early afternoon, he said.

The Skokie Fire Department, according to the release, began mitigation efforts in accordance with recommended practices and the alarm was upgraded to a Hazardous Materials Box Alarm, which brought in mutual aid assistance from neighboring fire departments.

The other agencies who helped the Skokie Fire Department came from Evanston, Glencoe, Glenview, Lincolnwood, Morton Grove, Niles, Northfield, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Wilmette and the Mabas Division 3 Hazardous Materials Response Team.

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