The Associated Press
February 10, 2003, 11:54 AM EST
LOUISVILLE, KY. -- As much as 1,800 gallons of tequila spilled into the city sewer system Monday because of a worker's mistake in unloading a tanker truck at the Brown-Forman Distillery.
"As we were unloading a tanker truck of Pepe Lopez Tequila into our tanks before we bottle it, an employee tried to unload it into a tank that was already full," said Brown-Forman spokesman Phil Lynch said. "It was a simple case of human error."
Fire units were dispatched to the scene at 8:23 a.m. on the report of a hazardous materials incident because the tequila poured into the sewer system.
The booze overflowed at the rate of 100 gallons per minute, Lynch said, resulting in 1,500 to 1,800 gallons entering the sewer system. The fire department and officials with the Metropolitan Sewer District were called because of the flammability of the 80-proof Tequila, he said.
The alcohol was diluted with water. Lynch said the monetary loss was not immediately estimated.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press