CANNINGTON brook turned black today (April 2) after 500 tonnes of fertiliser spilled out from Cannington Enterprises onto the A39.

At approximately 6am this morning, a field storage tank holding the digestate (organic fertiliser) ruptured and allowed a significant portion of its load to spill out onto the road and into the brook.

Tankers and other equipment have been out all day attempting to contain the damage, building dams in the brook and starting the cleanup operation.

A sand bund was quickly put into place to arrest the flow onto the A39 and a sluice gate was closed to reduce the pollution of local open watercourses.

A spokesperson from Cannington Enterprises said: “Clean up operations started immediately and will continue until all traces of the digestate have been removed.

“The police were informed of the slippery conditions and employees of the company were proactive in slowing the traffic down to reduce the possibility of an accident.

“The rupture took place through the failure of a mechanical stirrer, which damaged the impermeable liner of the storage tank. This tank was in the process of being emptied for dismantling.”

The black brook travels through people's gardens who live near Cannington Enterprises.

Gary Harrison, commercial manager at Cannington enterprises, said: "I can assure people that it will be cleaned. We hope that we will have the majority away from the watercourse by tomorrow."