Waste Oil Spills Onto Morongo Indian Reservation; No Evacuations Ordered

RIVERSIDE (CBS) — A multi-agency effort was needed to clean up an estimated 100 gallons of waste oil that spilled over onto an Native American reservation in Riverside County, officials said Monday.

State and county teams were called in to the spill in Banning, which was reported around 9:40 a.m. in the 550 block of East Ramsey Street, Riverside County Fire Department spokeswoman Jody Hagemann said.

The oil traveled more than a mile through a flood control channel on the Morongo Indian reservation, she said, adding that no evacuations were necessary.

UPDATE:  Riverside County fire officials on Tuesday determined that no waste oil reached the Morongo Indian reservation.

Several agencies were involved in the cleanup, including the fire department's hazardous materials team, the Riverside County Department of Environmental Health and the state Department of Fish and Game, Hagemann said.

Officials were investigating the source and cause of the oil spill.

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