Gasoline smell in Ferron causes concern for residents

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

Some Ferron residents along Bowden Lane have been complaining about a gasoline smell in their homes, suspected of coming in the sewer drains for the past week. After complaints to the Castle Valley Special Service District, the district has taken action to get to the bottom of the odor. The district flushed all of the lines and used the vactor truck to clean the sewer drains. These actions didn’t stop the problem and the odor is still present.
Friday the crews dug a hole at the corner of 100 South and State Street. This is the spot which is the end of the line for that particular line. The crew severed the pipe at that location and the cement truck came and the pipe and surrounding area was filled with cement. It is hoped this will fix the problem by not allowing the gasoline to seep into the sewer line.
CVSSD director Jacob Sharp was on the scene. At the site where the hole was dug, the gasoline puddled at the bottom of the hole on top of the ground water. It is not known where the gasoline is coming from. The two stores in Ferron, have above the ground gas tanks and no buried underground tanks. Research is being conducted in the area to see if there are any possible sources for the gasoline leak. They are looking for any long ago buried and forgotten underground gas tanks. It was mentioned a dairy used to be in the vicinity of the gasoline leak. But, there isn’t any information available currently to tell residents where the gasoline is seeping from.
Local haz-mat crews have been notified about the problem. After the Department of Environmental Quality from Price checks out the hole and the gasoline in the hole, then the hole will be filled in again and hopefully the smell will go away for Ferron residents.
Residents complained the odor has given them a headache and dizziness. Attempts to air out the homes hasn’t been successful as the smell returns. Information will be posted as details become available in this matter.