Hesperia ratifies $301,098 in emergency cleanup after diesel spill closed Main Street for about 10 hours

The Hesperia City Council on Oct. 20 ratified $301,098 in emergency spending to clean up diesel fuel that ran from a gas station onto Main Street and into a storm drain in June.

The item passed as part of the joint consent calendar, approved 5-0 on a motion by Council Member Ochoa, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Pullen, according to draft minutes. The recommendation went to both the council and the Hesperia Water District board.

What the report describes

According to a staff report, San Bernardino County sheriff's deputies went to Main Street at Eighth Avenue on June 25 for a report of a suspicious vehicle. They found it abandoned in a gas station lot, and the report says it "was in the process of stealing diesel fuel from the underground storage tanks."

County firefighters isolated the pump that was sending fuel to a bladder reservoir inside the vehicle. Diesel escaped the property onto Main Street and into a storm drain, and slick, flammable conditions kept the street fully closed for roughly 10 hours, the report says.

Staff estimated that about 1,700 gallons left the property. Crews flushed the drain with more than 2,000 gallons of water, and two vacuum trucks downstream collected the mixture.

Fuel was later found in sand inside the final 100 feet of pipe leading into the H-01 basin. Removing it required confined-space work and disposal at a site that can handle petroleum contamination, according to the report.

The costs

The ratified total covers $103,855 for Environmental Logistics Inc.'s road and storm drain cleanup and $197,243 for Jeremy Harris Construction Inc.'s removal of contaminated sand.

The council also authorized the city manager to approve a $156,933 amendment to the city's existing Jeremy Harris contract for H-01 basin cleaning, raising its ceiling to $350,704.

The 2026-27 budget did not account for the spending. Staff plans to look for general fund savings and would bring a budget amendment to the fourth-quarter review if that falls short, the report says.

Fire code

In a separate public hearing, the council adopted Resolution No. 2026-49. It ratifies Ordinance No. FPD 26-02 of the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District.

The draft minutes name Mayor Bennington and Council Members Gregg, Lee and Ochoa as voting yes and list Pullen as recused. They do not give a reason for the recusal.

A staff report says the fire district adopted the ordinance May 19.

It puts into effect the 2025 California Fire Code, with local amendments, as well as the 2025 California Wildland-Urban Interface Code. Under state law, those amendments do not take effect in Hesperia until the council ratifies them, the report says.

Other consent items

• A $148,841 contract with Cooley Construction Inc. to repave a stretch of Caliente Road where pavement broke down after an emergency waterline repair. Twelve bids were received.
• A larger state planning grant for a recycled water master plan, now up to $300,000 instead of $150,000. A staff report says the State Water Resources Control Board found that the city and water district meet the state's definition of a disadvantaged community, which also eliminated a 50% local match.