Car at Staples Mill intersection sprayed, covered with white paint after hauling truck loses load

HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Henrico Police is investigating after an unsuspecting driver’s car at a Staples Mill intersection was nearly completely covered with paint Monday morning.

Virginia State Police said a trooper in the area of Staples Mill Road came upon the odd and unlucky sight around 11 a.m. Sept. 11 — A truck hauling barrels of paint had lost part of its load, resulting in water-soluble paint spraying onto a car at the Wallace Road intersection and pouring out across Staples Mill.

The hauling company, Grub Hill Transportation, confirmed the truck was hauling paint at the time of the incident.

“It is paint,” a company representative stated over the phone. “We are a hauling company, sir.  We were hauling paint.” 

8News was told the company was “aware of an incident” but the representative answering the phone hung up when asked for details on where the paint had been picked up from, and where it was being delivered.

Henrico Police said the driver of the truck hauling the paint was charged with failure to secure a load.

Mario Torres witnessed the situation as it unfolded. He says he saw the truck speed through a red light before swerving and slamming on the brakes, narrowly missing the SUV.

“He almost got killed, almost got killed you know,” Torres said. “Thank God he didn’t.”

The driver of the SUV — who wished to remain anonymous — told 8News he thought the substance was soap at first, until he had trouble breathing.

“He thought he was going to die,” Torres said. “He couldn’t breathe inside of the car because of the paint.”

Police said nobody was hurt in the incident.

Portions of Staples Mill Road and Waller Road were expected to be shut down for several hours Monday as crews cleaned the spill. Police said the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality was said to be at the scene assisting with the clean-up.