Skip to main content

Who you gonna call?

Emergency services in the US state of Oregon recently faced a rather unusual challenge when they were called out to deal with the aftermath of a crash. A truck had overturned, spilling its load into the roadway and onto a number of other vehicles. Unfortunately the truck’s load happened to comprise several tonnes of live hagfish, which were being transported to Korea, where they are eaten as a delicacy.
October 18, 2017 Read time: 1 min

Emergency services in the US state of Oregon recently faced a rather unusual challenge when they were called out to deal with the aftermath of a crash. A truck had overturned, spilling its load into the roadway and onto a number of other vehicles. Unfortunately the truck’s load happened to comprise several tonnes of live hagfish, which were being transported to Korea, where they are eaten as a delicacy. Hagfish have no backbones and produce slime when under stress, which was certainly the case in this crash. The truck and several cars were damaged during the incident and also covered in slime, which emergency crews had to wash away before the road, the busy I-101 route, could be returned to normal traffic flow.

Related Content

  • Montreal’s new Champlain Bridge is shaping up for Christmas
    September 10, 2018
    Montreal’s Champlain Bridges - one going up, one coming down, reports David Arminas The importance of the new Champlain Bridge to Montreal and Canada can’t be overstated, given the crumbling nature of the not-so-old original Champlain Bridge. The original steel truss affair across the St Lawrence River and the adjacent St Lawrence Seaway canal is “a lifeline for residents and businesses” in greater Montréal, according to the national Auditor General - the public sector spending watchdog. “It accommodates
  • Traffic control to beat congestion
    November 6, 2012
    Max Lay discusses how congestion has posed problems throughout history from early civilisation to the present day One of the earliest known human settlements was at the Springs of Elisha at Jericho. Inevitably, locals collecting fresh water from the springs would encounter other water carriers. When a path was too narrow, or access to it was too limited, or it crossed another path, some carriers would find it necessary to stand aside for others. Priority in such cases might be based on common courtesy and p
  • Researchers trial 3D printing for both concrete and asphalt roads
    February 27, 2019
    Automated road repairs, using 3D printing, could save money and vastly reduce disruption, and researchers are already showing it’s possible - Kristina Smith reports It’s the middle of the night, and in the street below a team is busy carrying out repairs to the road surface. But there isn’t a human in sight. A road repair drone has landed at the site of a crack and a 3D asphalt printer is now busy filling in that crack. A group of traffic cone drones have positioned themselves around the repair location