Salem Fire Department HAZMAT Team Responds to Overturned Trailer on Freeway

Crews initially thought the trailer could have been used for meth production.

Photo courtesy: Chris Riffle/Salem Fire

(SALEM) - Salem firefighters responded to an unusual call around 7:00 tonight; a travel trailer had overturned on the I-5 at milepost 248 this morning and was still causing a problem.

Early contact with the vehicle made tow truck drivers feel ill according to reports, so they drew back and the trailer was determined to be a possible rolling meth lab.

Chris Riffle of Salem Fire says HAZMAT Team members donned level A HAZMAT suits and entered the overturned travel trailer to check for leaking contents and possible drug production equipment.

She says the trailer overturned early, during morning drive time, detaching from the truck that was towing it during a motor vehicle accident. A local towing company was called to remove the travel trailer from the side of the freeway to the off ramp area. There it sat through the day.

This evening, Oregon State Police called the towing company again to remove the vehicle from the scene. The two drivers from Wiltse's Towing, who were at the scene earlier this morning, reported feeling sick from an odor that was emitted from the vehicle.

That's when the HAZMAT response team was activated, according to Riffle. Salem Fire Department responded with the HAZMAT response vehicle, 3 engines, and a Battalion Chief.

As it turned out, the suspicious travel trailer was eventually determined not to be a drug lab.