Manners Park opened after leak in pond, investigation to begin
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TAYLORVILLE — The beloved archway of Manners Park will continue to welcome visitors, as Park Board President Marlane Miller confirmed on Friday, March 13 that the park was once again open to the public following a leak of fuel oil into the north pond. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will be investigating the incident, and the train company Norfolk Southern will pay for the clean up efforts.
TAYLORVILLE — This Breeze-Courier file photo shows the north pond of Manners Park, where a fuel oil leak was discovered in the afternoon of Thursday, March 12, 2026. The pond will remain closed while the clean up and investigation continues, but the rest of the park is open to the public.
Breeze-Courier File Photos
Rachel LeBeane
Breeze-Courier Writer
TAYLORVILLE — At approximately 3:20 p.m. on Thursday, March 12, The Taylorville Fire Department was dispatched to investigate an unknown liquid observed floating in the north pond at Manners Park. Upon investigation, the substance was identified as a fuel-type oil entering the pond through a storm sewer drain.
Taylorville Fire Department Chief Matthew Adermann confirmed on a phone call with the Breeze-Courier on Friday, March 13 that the oil was coming from the train depot building to the north of the park. The oil had been stored there, but at this point in time, there was no information on how the oil got into the drain. Adermann said he could speculate, but he would not until the investigation had been concluded.
“Norfolk Southern has taken the lead, and they contacted the environmental company,” Chief Adermann said, adding “There will be no cost to the city for the clean up, other than what the Fire Department did last night.”
The environmental company came to the park last night and “boomed” the pond so that the oil did not leave the pond. These booms are absorbent and help stop the contamination. Aldermann said that crews would be out soon to skim the pond and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) would be sending someone to investigate.
“They will do all the reports and hopefully share it with me. I will be monitoring the situation. There is no threat to any persons at this time. I would advise people to stay away from the area for awhile, as there will be big trucks going in and out.” Chief Adermann stated.
According to the Fire Department’s press release, the firefighters also placed additional absorbent pads in catch basins leading to the pond in an effort to further contain the contamination. After consulting with the IEPA, a plan was established for the Fire Department to continue deploying booms in targeted areas of the pond to prevent further spreading.
An environmental cleanup contractor was dispatched to the scene and remained on site overnight to continue mitigation efforts. Marlene Miller, President of the Park Board, confirmed that someone from IEPA had stayed on site over night during a phone call with the Breeze-Courier on Friday morning. Miller also verified what Chief Adermann shared, that the IEPA was sending someone to do a more detailed assessment and investigation of the incident.
“The park is open now,” Miller said, “It’s just the pond area that’s closed. The farmer’s market won’t be impacted. That is at the Chautauqua Building. All the water we use at the park is City water – the same that everyone else uses. We don’t drink from the pond.”
Miller also shared that she would be keeping an eye on the situation as well. “We are concerned about this. We are worried about the fish and the turtles, and we’ve got geese that use the pond a lot. It’s a major concern.” She noted that Norfolk Southern would be paying for the full clean up of the park pond.
Neither Miller nor Adermann could give a definite time frame for how long it would take to clean up the pond, or when the IEPA would finish their investigation. Both just made certain to share that there was no threat to the public due to the incident.
The Breeze-Courier will be following the story as more information comes available.
