Human waste leaks onto Rotoma road

Human waste piles up. Photo / Supplied

Piles of human waste have been spilled on to the road at Rotoma.

A worker at the Rotoma Trading Post, who did not want to be named, said an EcoCast truck pulled up outside their cafe yesterday afternoon after it had leaked human waste along State Highway 30. It continued to leak on to the road for at least an hour.

"There are piles [of waste] just under knee height right outside and dibs and dabs all along the road," she said.

"It smells worse than it looks."

She said due to the strong unpleasant smell they had closed their cafe doors half an hour earlier than usual.

The police, the Rotoma Fire Brigade and a Rotorua District Council representative all attended the scene, to ensure the waste was disposed of correctly.

Council engineering services manager Andy Bell said it appeared the tailgate on the truck hadn't sealed properly and started "leaking sludge".

Mr Bell said the driver realised he was leaking waste on to the road and stopped in Rotoma. The truck dropped about a cubic metre of waste.

Mr Bell said: "We have contacted health authorities and have sent clean up trucks to help out. It shouldn't take too long to clean up."

EcoCast manager John Fell said the truck had been on its way from the Rotorua waste water treatment plant to the company's worm farm at Kawerau.

He confirmed a tailgate had broken and despite the presence of safety chains a "couple of wheelbarrows" of waste had leaked.

Mr Fell said they conducted weekly checks on all their trucks, which made multiple trips on the highway every day.

"It's a freak occurrence," he said. "I'm not too sure what happened yet."

EcoCast would investigate.

- Rotorua Daily Post