China ? Chinese authorities tried to slow the spread of a toxic spill by building 51 makeshift dams along the tainted river and using fire trucks to pump out polluted water before it reaches a reservoir serving a city of 10 million people, state media said Friday.

The spill of 60 tons of coal tar into the Dasha River in north China’s Shanxi province was the latest in a series of mishaps fouling the country’s already polluted waterways. Officials said there have been at least 76 water pollution accidents in the last six months.

A villager who lives along the river described seeing dozens of dead fish floating in the water.

A truck overloaded with 60 tons of coal tar – a substance linked to cancer – crashed Monday and dumped its contents into the river. Measurements Friday showed that levels of phenol, also known as carbolic acid, were 100 times greater than acceptable levels in some spots.

In November, a major chemical spill on the Songhua River halted water supplies to tens of millions in China and Russia. Local authorities were accused of reacting too slowly and delaying public disclosure of the spill.