A suspected chemical spill in a rural Logan County creek prompted a response from multiple emergency agencies late Thursday afternoon.
Around 5 p.m., a passerby reported seeing an oily film on the surface of a creek near the intersection of County Road 87 and Township Road 86, just outside of Santa Fe near the Auglaize County line.
Lakeview Fire and Logan County Hazmat crews responded and began investigating the source of the substance, and worked to contain it.
Fire Chief Josh Oakley said the Logan County Emergency Management Agency, Auglaize County EMA, and the Environmental Protection Agency have since taken over the scene.
By late Thursday night, the spill had been contained, and local crews were released from the area.
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Helen Norris from the Logan County EMA confirmed Friday that the contamination was eventually traced to an old, abandoned oil well in Auglaize County, several miles from the bridge.
The well, believed to have been closed around 1950, was leaking oil into the ground.
Auglaize County officials were able to stop the leak at the source.
Oil was found flowing into the water from a 16-inch field tile about half a mile north of the bridge, as well as from a roadside ditch and culvert.
Between 500 and 2,000 gallons of oil may have entered the water.
Officials from the Ohio EPA and ODNR were back on site Friday to help monitor the cleanup and environmental impact.
