
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, December 1, 1993                   TAG: 9312010257
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C3   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LORTON                                LENGTH: Short

PRISON FUEL POLLUTES CREEK

Up to 2,000 gallons of diesel from a broken fuel line at the District of Columbia's Lorton prison complex has contaminated a creek, Fairfax County fire officials said Tuesday.

Firefighters worked throughout the day to clean up the fuel from a small tributary of the Occoquan River. The leak was reported by a ranger at the Occoquan Regional Park, about two miles away from the prison complex.

Fire officials traced the diesel spill along the tributary to the prison. There they found the ruptured line leaking 3 to 5 gallons of diesel fuel a minute, said Lt. Larry Collier, spokesman for the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department.

"It takes some time to determine the impact this could have on the environment," Collier said. "But the concern is that 2,000 gallons of fuel is a pretty large amount."

Prison officials said the fuel line is used to power the facility's emergency generators.

by CNB