Stuck: Drivers unable to move after N.H. highway syrup leak

Firefighters in Keene, N.H., were faced with a sticky situation Monday afternoon when a large box truck carrying 220 gallons of maple syrup leaked its contents onto Route 101, officials said.

The truck was traveling east on Route 101 where it intersects with Winchester Street just before 1 p.m. when it became apparent that gallons of raw maple syrup were leaking onto the road, according to Mark Howard, Keene’s fire chief.

Two out of three lanes of the roadway were closed during the initial cleanup, causing heavy traffic delays, Howard said.

“Anywhere it could leak out, there was syrup coming out of the back of the truck,” Howard said.

Firefighters worked to clean up the sticky mess using an oil absorbent, which dries and absorbs spills, and then shoveling it into a front end loader, officials said.

“The Fire Department is down there making pancakes,” Keene police Sergeant Thaddeus Derendal said.

Howard said that officials were investigating the leak, which may have occurred during packaging or transport .