SUFFOLK, Va. — There is no risk to the public after a hazmat team addressed a multiple reports of a gas odor in eastern Suffolk.
On Sept. 24, multiple people called called Suffolk Emergency Communications about a "noxious odor," according to city news release. Suffolk Fire and Rescue was unable to locate any apparent gas leak or source of odor.
On Tuesday, the city says a strong odor was coming from the Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) plant at Southeastern Public Service Authority (SPSA) Regional Landfill located on Bob Foeller Drive. Suffolk Fire and Rescue decided it was a HazMat operation, the plant was shut down and staff and contractors were evacuated from the area.
At 10:30 a.m., hazmat assessed the scene, according to the city. The hazmat team determined the odor’s source to be a 60 pound metal tank containing methanethiol (methyl mercaptan) located in a dumpster on plant grounds.
The city says that the hazmat team concluded that there was no natural gas leak and that the odor was from the methanethiol compound—the substance put into natural gas to give it its distinct bad smell.
The RNG plant operator took immediate action to address and clear out the lingering odor, according to the city. An emergency response team is assisting in the cleanup and proper disposal of the tank.
Due to the containerized nature of the metal tank and the low boiling point of methanethiol, no methanethiol had the potential to enter storm waterways at the Regional Landfill, according to a city news release. The city says the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has investigated this incident and determined that the release of mercaptan does not pose any risk to the environment.
“The responsible party for the business is working with a clean-up contractor to clean up the leak and the damaged tank," said Suffolk Fire Chief Michael Barakey while on-site, according to a news release. "All detection and monitoring of the immediate area, and the communities that reported the odor, are negative for any hazards, and although a residual odor maybe present for a few days, there is no health or other hazards to the public.”
