1. The catalyst for this list is a recent chocolate spill in a German town that covered a road with over a ton of chocolate. A tank from a nearby chocolate factory burst, resulting in a river of sweetness flowing down the street. This incident reminded us of a similar event that occurred in May of this year when a truck overturned on a Polish highway, dumping 12 tons of chocolate across the road. Fortunately, no serious injuries were reported in either incident.
2. Back in July 2017, a highway in Oregon experienced a bizarre incident involving a few hundred Pacific hagfish, also known as slime eels. A flatbed truck carrying more than 13 containers of slime eels suddenly braked to avoid a construction zone, causing one of the containers to hit a car in the opposite direction and the rest to spill off the truck. The result was a disgusting four-car pileup and more than 7,500 pounds of eels scattered on the road.
3. In 2012, a truck in Poland spilled an astonishing 24 tons of sardines onto the road. The incident occurred because the driver forgot to close the rear door of the truck, leading to a massive mess of sardines and a strong smell permeating the area.
4. A rainstorm in Wisconsin in January 2017 caused a large box of red Skittles, which were intended for cattle feed due to being deemed unfit for packaging, to spill onto a highway. The sight of the red candies scattered across the road created a gory and bizarre scene.
5. In March 2011, a UPS truck in Massachusetts overturned, resulting in 16,000 pounds of ink cartridges, and their colorful contents, being spread across the highway. Fortunately, since the ink was water soluble, the incident did not cause significant harm. However, it caused considerable traffic congestion until the mess was cleaned up.
6. A family traveling through West Virginia in 2013 experienced a Lego spill when totes of Legos strapped to the roof of their vehicle came loose and scattered across the highway. This unexpected pile of Legos posed a potential traffic hazard and created a challenging situation for clean-up crews.
7. While not as disgusting as some of the other spills, a vegetable oil spill can create a slippery mess on the road. In 2012, a spill covering 26 miles of highway in Indiana caused significant disruption, taking days to clean up.
8. In 2012, hundreds of bottles of maple syrup spilled in Kentucky, creating a sticky situation. The syrup was scattered across the highway after a truck carrying it collided with the overpass pillars.
9. In 2010, a truck carrying tomato paste in California experienced a mishap that resulted in tomato paste spilling all over the road. The visuals of the red paste splattered across the highway resembled something out of a horror movie.
10. A truck carrying a shipment of Deadpool comics, including other titles, was involved in a crash just days after the release of the movie in February 2016. While it is unknown who was driving the second truck involved in the crash, the timing of the incident seemed fitting for the mischievous nature of the R-rated crime-fighting character.
11. A milk truck driver fell asleep behind the wheel and crashed off a highway overpass. The accident resulted in spilled milk covering the road. Though the driver only suffered minor injuries, the incident led to some milk-related puns.
12. Printer ink makes a second appearance on this list, but this time the crash was not as colorful as the previous incident. In March 2019, a motorist cut off a semi-truck near Atlanta, causing it to crash and spill 40,000 pounds of black ink across the highway. The aerial view of the black ink on the road resembled an impressive tire-slaying stunt.
In conclusion, these incidents highlight the unexpected and unusual spills that have occurred on highways, ranging from chocolate and slime eels to Legos and printer ink. While some of these spills have caused traffic disruptions and created memorable scenes, fortunately, most did not result in serious injuries.