A portion of a busy West Melbourne road will remain closed throughout the long holiday weekend after a spill Tuesday covered the asphalt with thousands of pounds of aloe vera gel.

The semi-truck carrying the liquid leaked the oily substance on Eber Road between Dairy Road and Hollywood Boulevard Tuesday afternoon.

Crews tried to absorb the mess with sand, but on Wednesday morning determined that the gel is full of mineral oil and is causing the slippery sheen that showed up when it rained.

The city and county decided to shut down that portion of roadway through Sunday and re-evaluate Monday to see whether repaving the road is necessary.