Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

Gas provider faces fire over B.C. leak and its 'apocalyptic' stink

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 18 Jan, 2024 11:03 AM
  • Gas provider faces fire over B.C. leak and its 'apocalyptic' stink

Tara Jean Stevens said the "apocalyptic" stench that blanketed the Metro Vancouver community of Delta on Tuesday night was so heavy her car and garage still smelled of rotten eggs Wednesday morning.

"I had a headache all night," said Stevens, a radio host on Wave 98.3. "I never get headaches … it felt thick in the air, even though you couldn't see it."

The source was a FortisBC station near Ladner Trunk Road. 

The explanation about the cause has shifted, with FortisBC attributing it to an "equipment leak" in a social media post on Tuesday afternoon, adding later that the leaked gas had high levels of a harmless odour additive. 

It said Wednesday in another social media post the smell was "due to a controlled release" of gas, while a statement on the FortisBC website described the source of the smell as a "minor leak" that was detected during the controlled release.

Regardless of the source, the chemical that caused the smell was mercaptan, which is typically added to odourless gas supplies so leaks are easier to detect.

The gas provider is being criticized for a lack of transparency and timely explanation about the stench Delta Mayor George Harvie said led to emergency services being flooded with calls.

Stevens said she first noticed the smell around 3 p.m. Tuesday when her son walked in the front door of their Delta home, and the smell was so strong she started to panic about what to do with her family.

"I was sitting here wondering, should I be getting in the car and getting out of here? Should I be driving until I don't smell it anymore? Is something about to explode? It was stressful."

In a written statement, Harvie said FortisBC didn't make a public statement on the gas release for more than four hours after initial reports about the smell were received by municipal officials.

Harvie said there was a lack of communication from FortisBC, calling it "an egregious oversight."

The heavy odour resulted in a flood of calls to police and firefighters that seriously hampered Delta's emergency response resources, he said.

"The stress and panic that this incident caused to both the public and our first responders was completely unnecessary," Harvie said.

He said he had asked Delta's city manager to conduct a full review into why residents and businesses were "left in the dark" about the release.

"FortisBC must be accountable for their delay in response causing confusion and alarm in our community.”

In another written response, the City of Delta said its fire department received 19 calls transferred from 911 about the smell, and firehalls received about 100 inquiries. That doubled call volumes compared to the daily average.

In many cases, fire crews had to physically attend to make sure there were no on-site gas leaks, it said.

The City also said Delta Police received several 911 calls about the smell and about 50 non-emergency calls on Tuesday, delaying their ability to take other calls.

"The failure of FortisBC to communicate this gas odour leak had a serious impact on our emergency services whose resources should be dedicated to real emergencies," Harvie said.

At 4:56 p.m. on Tuesday, FortisBC had said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that it had responded to reports about the smell and "an equipment leak causing the odour is under control."

Around 9 p.m. another social media post flagged a service alert about the smell, saying "gas is under control."

In its website statement issued Wednesday, FortisBC said the odour was the result of work on new equipment at a Ladner facility, where "a controlled release of gas" was conducted Tuesday.

It said a minor leak was detected and brought under control by 2 p.m. "and repairs are underway." But the leak contained a large amount of mercaptan.

"The release of gas with a high concentration of mercaptan was not anticipated and, due to the strong smell, it has been detected by residents in several communities, including Ladner, Delta, Richmond and Vancouver," the statement said.

It said that despite the strong smell, mercaptan was not hazardous to inhale "with the quantity released in the atmosphere."

"We apologize for the inconvenience this may cause residents and commuters in the area. We realize the odour is very strong but it is expected to dissipate."

The odour was so heavy on Tuesday that BC Ferries told foot passengers at its nearby terminal to stay inside during their commute, while vehicle passengers were asked to roll up their windows.

Stevens said it was crucial to find out what went wrong.

"Even if FortisBC had properly warned our community that something was happening, I still think that it was a completely inappropriate level of something in our air," she said. "I mean, it felt apocalyptic. It was very off-putting."

MORE National ARTICLES

32 more Canadians have left Gaza Strip for Egypt, Global Affairs Canada says

32 more Canadians have left Gaza Strip for Egypt, Global Affairs Canada says
Global Affairs Canada says 32 more Canadians were able to leave the Gaza Strip for Egypt on Thursday after a key border crossing reopened. The department says there had originally been 40 Canadian names on the list of people approved to leave through the border crossing at Rafah, but precisely what changed wasn't immediately clear.  

32 more Canadians have left Gaza Strip for Egypt, Global Affairs Canada says

Ontario to ban Canadian work experience requirement in job postings

Ontario to ban Canadian work experience requirement in job postings
Ontario plans to ban employers from requiring Canadian work experience in job postings or application forms, the labour minister announced Thursday, saying it will be an important step to help newcomers get their foot in the door. Ontario would be the first province to dismantle that barrier in the hiring process, Labour Minister David Piccini said.

Ontario to ban Canadian work experience requirement in job postings

11 people sent to hospital in school bus crash in Burnaby

11 people sent to hospital in school bus crash in Burnaby
Eleven people have been sent to hospital after a school bus crashed into a home in Burnaby, B.C. BC Emergency Health Services says in a statement that all 11 patients are in stable condition. Police have asked drivers to avoid a busy stretch of Canada Way.  

11 people sent to hospital in school bus crash in Burnaby

Trudeau says pauses in Gaza fighting a template for peace, as Canadians wait to flee

Trudeau says pauses in Gaza fighting a template for peace, as Canadians wait to flee
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says newly agreed-upon "humanitarian pauses" to temporarily end fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip must last long enough for people to leave the area and for aid to arrive. The White House says that Israel has agreed to put in place four-hour daily humanitarian pauses in its assault on Hamas in northern Gaza, beginning today.

Trudeau says pauses in Gaza fighting a template for peace, as Canadians wait to flee

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to table Liberals' fall economic statement Nov. 21

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to table Liberals' fall economic statement Nov. 21
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is expected to table the federal government's fall economic statement on Nov. 21. The mini-budget is set to offer an update on federal finances, as well as new measures that reflect the government's priorities. 

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to table Liberals' fall economic statement Nov. 21

Two Montreal Jewish schools hit by gunshots, police say, nobody injured

Two Montreal Jewish schools hit by gunshots, police say, nobody injured
Montreal police say two Jewish schools were hit overnight by gunshots, in what seems to be the latest violent event in the city tied to the war between Israel and Hamas. Staff members discovered bullet holes on the exterior of the buildings when they arrived Thursday morning. Police said nobody was inside at the time of the shootings.

Two Montreal Jewish schools hit by gunshots, police say, nobody injured