City of Houston says runoff from truck fire in Midtown ended up in Buffalo Bayou

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A viewer tip prompted Action 13 to investigate an unusual smell. Our discovery led ABC13 to contact the city with serious concerns.

The strange smell someone emailed to ABC13 wasn't obvious from the top of the Sabine Street bridge, but down next to Buffalo Bayou, our team knew something was wrong.

It was the overwhelming and noxious smell of motor oil. ABC13 traced the smell and the oily sheen on the water to McElligot's Pool, just off Buffalo Bayou. The pool is fed from a drainage pipe that runs under Allen Parkway and empties into the bayou.

Eyewitness News reached out to the city, which said we were the first to call them about it, and that they were sending out inspectors from Public Works and the Health Department. The first crew to arrive was the Houston Fire Department, who tested the water and told ABC13 reporter Lileana Pearson it was diesel fuel. A boom was placed to soak up the runoff.

That runoff could have been flowing for hours. Chief Taylor Bales with the Houston Fire Department said he believes the fuel originated from a box truck that caught fire Tuesday morning on Travis Street in Midtown, about 2.5 miles away. Bales said the truck fire was close to a building, so they put a lot of water on the flames. The chief said a hazmat team was at Travis Street this morning to dam up any runoff from the truck, but he's assuming fuel still made it down a storm drain.

Bales said a crew is working to confirm his suspicions. For now, cleanup is being carried out and monitored by an environmental team.

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