GARDEAU, Pa --- Thousands of fish and other aquatic organisms no longer live in the treasured waters of the Portage Run Creek in McKean County.

More than 48,000 gallons of sodium hydroxide spilled into the stream when 31 train boxcars and cars derailed near the juncture of McKean, Ca meron and Potter counties on Friday, June 30.

That chemical flowed downstream to Emporium, and by last Saturday morning (July 1) it ended up in Sinnemahoning-- literally suffocating thousands of fish and other amphibians.

However, some of those lucky water animals survived. Some cray fish, whom fed on the fish, and at least one stone fly, spotted near Emporium, stayed alive in the contaminated stream.

Portage Run, a branch of Sinnemahoning Creek, once dubbed as a Class A stream, provided fishers with a pristine spot to catch small mouth bass and trout. The distinguished tourist attraction, that drew people from all over the country to this area, has been put on hold.

The Driftwood Branch of the Sinnemahoning in Cameron County, another popular fishing spot, suffered in the wake of the recent incident.

Cameron County Watershed Specialist Zoschg says that the stream might be recolonized in about five years, but he said for the species to adapt to the enviroment, it'll likely take longer.

Recent studies by the Center for Toxicology and Environmental Health of Little Rock, Ark. revealed the Ph level of around 13 and 14 when the chemical circulated throughout the stream.
"While most of the stream is close to its normal pH levels, there are still spots where small pools of concentrated sodium hydroxide may exist at levels that could cause injury," DEP Emergency Response Manager Dan Holler said.

The state Department of Environment of Protection used benthic macroinvertebrates, insects visible to the naked eye, to test the water quality.

Officials reported five cars contained the chemical, also known as lye, but only three of them leaked. A tanker carried chlorine but wasn't breached.

Bruce Manning, of the McKean County Emergency Management Agency, said the chemical seeped from one tanker, traveled under the railroad tracks, entered a pipe and flowed into Portage Run, a branch of Sinnemahoning Creek.

"It (the affects of he derailment) does have a huge impact on Cameron County and the Emporium Borough because it is in the center where everything is located," Emporium Manager Robert Aversa said.