Truck carrying nuclear waste gets off course

BOISE – A truck carrying radioactive waste through southern Idaho briefly deviated from its assigned route on Thursday when the driver missed an exit, the Idaho State Police said.

The truck, operated by Colorado All State Transportation of Henderson, Colo., was carrying waste from the Hanford site near the Tri-Cities to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant underground repository in New Mexico, said Lt. Bill Reese, ISP hazardous materials specialist.

He said driver Glenn Treadaway missed the exit to continue on Interstate 84 south into Utah and instead traveled about four miles east on I-86, where he used a maintenance crossover to turn around.

The trucks carrying casks with waste operate with an electronic vehicle-tracking program called Transcom. It immediately notified those monitoring the shipment that the truck was off course just after 1:30 a.m.

State Police communications centers in Boise and Pocatello were among the first to detect the deviation.

“We treat even a slight course deviation seriously for two reasons,” Reese said. “First, because any truck carrying nuclear waste is held to the highest standards of safety, and secondly, because this is not the first time this has happened.

“Another truck shipping WIPP material deviated from its route in April, traveling almost to Pocatello on I-86 before discovering their error,” Reese said. “At that time we reminded the Department of Energy of the importance of meeting each and every shipping plan requirement.”

He said the state would contact the department and the trucking company for any actions about the incident.

Trucking company officials were not available for comment on Thursday night.

“The thing I’d say is the driver just missed his turn,” said Dennis Hurtt with the U.S. Department of Energy in New Mexico. “As soon as he realized that, he got back on his route and moved on. There was nothing that would affect safety and there was no risk to the public.”

Hurtt said the trucks are tracked by satellite and the casks and shipments are checked continually.

Shipments from Hanford travel through Idaho on I-84, which enters Idaho just south of Payette and travels through Boise, Twin Falls and Burley before entering Utah.

Hanford’s shipments of transuranic waste include such material as plutonium-contaminated gloves and tools.

Its first shipment to WIPP was in July 2000, and it will send an estimated 2,500 shipments, or about 80,000 drums, to WIPP over the next 30 years.