Trash truck allegedly leaks unknown substance in Tyler neighborhood

TYLER, Texas ( KETK ) – It was an ordinary trash pick-up day on Tuesday in the Wellington Place subdivision. That quickly took a turn when Ross Carmen saw a substance spilling out of the back of the trash truck.

“I happened to take the trash out as the guys got here and noticed that what was leaking was oil, not from the motor but from the bin in the trash,” Ross Carmen, Willington Place resident, said.

He alerted the trash service Live Oak Environmental. They came back the same day to put sand out to clean it up but Carmen says it wasn’t enough.

“I personally have had someone come out and clean my section of the street so I’m not tracking motor oil in and out of my driveway, I don’t know that’s what this is but I assume that’s what it is,” Carmen said.

What Carmen thought was going to be an easy fix has now left him and his neighbors wondering whose responsibility it is to clean up the oil.

“When I actually asked them to come out and clean this up instead of let’s say, acknowledging my request, they told me they weren’t going to pick up my trash anymore because I had made it such an issue,” Carmen said.

No one was sure how the substance got in the trash truck, but Carmen believed it came from a previous stop.

“Whoever put that in the bin, it would be nice if they could be held responsible at the same time, whether it came from the neighborhood or not, it’s hard for me to say, but it was obviously a pickup before we got to this location,” Carmen said.

If it was a hazardous material like oil, the City of Tyler says you shouldn’t be putting it in your trash pick-up bins in the first place.

“It could easily start fires, we’ve had truck fires before from people putting items like that, that might ignite in the trash,” Leroy Sparrow, director of City of Tyler Solid Waste, said.

The streets are still lined with the mystery substance and Carmen, along with his neighbors, are concerned about the damage the substance could do if it is oil.

“It poisons our yards, it poisons the water around us, and it becomes a much larger issue than just sitting right here in front of my house,” Carmen said.

Carmen has reached out to the city and county, but since he lives in an HOA, it is a situation that is out of their jurisdiction. Now all they can do is hope someone will come to their aid and clean it up.

KETK contacted Live Oak Environmental, we did have a chance to speak to a representative but have not received a statement from the trash company.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KETK.com | FOX51.com.