Gasoline Traced to Abandoned Tanks
The discovery of gasoline rising through the pavement of a street brought immediate action by the Huntington, N.Y., Volunteer Fire Department to prevent a fire or an explosion while the hazardous condition was being eliminated. It was five days before the problem was fully resolved.
Gasoline was discovered surfacing through pavement cracks on New York Avenue, in front of Jorgensen’s Service Station, about 1 p.m. last January 21, a Sunday. Water flowing in the street as a result of heavy rain was carrying gasoline into a storm drain that entered Huntington Harbor, a half mile away.
Chief Edward Dole of the Huntington Fire Department sized up the situation and immediately requested the Huntington Highway Department to deliver sand to the scene so a dike could be made to contain the gasoline. At the same time, the street was closed to traffic to minimize the chance of accidental ignition.
Cellars, manholes checked
After containment was established, fire fighters were ordered to check basements and manholes with flammable vapor meters while other Fire fighters blanketed the gasoline with foam. The men did not find explosive atmospheres in any basements or manholes.
Because it was a Sunday, efforts to find an agency to determine the source of the gasoline leak and to remove the gasoline were unsuccessful. With the subsiding of the rain, the flow of gasoline from the ground slowed and gradually seeped back into the ground. Fire fighters used absorbent pads to remove as much gasoline as possible and they kept the area under surveillance throughout the night.
Huntington, which is about 30 miles east of New York City on the north shore of Long Island, has had a proliferation of residential and commercial buildings over the years that has caused a serious runoff problem during heavy rain. In addition, the area has a high water table that is aggravated by a seam of hardpan running through it, creating above and below grade streams. Extremely high tides cause a backup of the less than ideal town drainage systems.
It is this writer’s opinion that these conditions were responsible for the gasoline incident.
Area excavated
On Monday, a firm engaged by the Mobil Oil Company hydrostatically tested the three 4000-gallon underground gasoline tanks at the Jorgensen station. The tests indicated no loss of product from these tanks.
Therefore, excavation was started in the area to determine the source of the leak. Gasoline-contaminated soil was removed by trucks and PVC test pipes were installed around the perimeter to determine the extent of the seepage. A product recovery tank truck was used to pick up surfacing gasoline. The work was hampered by the high water table, which fluctuated between 12 and 18 inches below ground level. An oil retention boom was positioned where the storm drain flowed into the harbor and absorbent materials were used to remove gasoline from the surface of the water.
By this time, representatives of the following agencies were at the scene: United States Coast Guard, New York State Department of Transportation, engineers from Mobil Oil, contractors, Huntington Fire Department, Town of Huntington Bay Constables, town engineers, Sewer Department, Environmental Protection Agency, Suffolk County Water Authority, and members of the press.
The operation continued for five days while all possible precautionary measures were taken to prevent a source of ignition. Periodic checks of test wells revealed no extension of the product.
On January 29, four 550-gallon abandoned buried tanks were discovered. Two of them were under the gasoline station pump island and the other two were close to the building. Two of the tanks contained some gasoline and were not plugged. The other two contained quantities of drain oil. The tanks were estimated to be about 25 years old and no record of their existence could be found.
Two tanks removed
The tanks were emptied, purged of explosive vapors, and two of the tanks were removed from the ground. Due to the proximity of the remaining tanks to foundations, they were not disturbed, but an opening was made at the top of each and they were filled with cement slurry.
It is our opinion that the high water table caused gasoline in these abandoned tanks to surface in the street.
Approximately 300 yards of fill was used to replace the contaminated soil that had been removed.
The cost of this entire project was estimated at $30,000. This amount did not include the station’s business loss.
Because record keeping on the installation of underground flammable liquid was vague or nonexisting years ago, the possibility of a similar leakage problem is not improbable.
As a result of this incident, Hunt ington is considering a regulation to prohibit the abandonment of underground flammable liquid tanks without a permit. Under the proposal, fuel tanks that are taken out of service but left in the ground must be filled with an inert solid material. If they are filled with sand, it must be done through a hole cut in the top of the tank so that a visual check can be made for the presence of voids created by the pyramiding of the sand during the filling. Another option would be to pour a cement slurry into a tank. In-service tanks would have to be pressure-tested every five years.