The Oakland County Sheriff’s Department, Marine Division and Orion Township Fire Department investigated a small oil spill on Lake Orion on Oct. 10.
Orion Township Fire Chief Jeff Key said it was his understanding that a couple who live on an island in Lake Orion were transporting drums of fuel oil for their furnace across the lake when one of the drums began to leak.
“They said they were hauling the drums on a pontoon boat,” Key added. “We’re not sure how much leaked into the lake, but we think it was perhaps the contents of one drum…they generally hold about 55 gallons.”
Key said the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality was notified, along with the Environmental Protection Agency, who will hire a private contractor to do the clean up on the lake.
“Being on the lake, it was more than just a local issue,” he explained.