INDIANAPOLIS -- Citizens Energy confirmed Tuesday afternoon that the source of a natural gas-like smell across central Indiana came from one of its industrial customers.
A spokesperson says that Heritage Crystal Clean, 1560 W. Old Raymond St., Indianapolis, released a chemical into the air that contained an odorant smelling similar to natural gas.
Citizens says the issue has been resolved.
Fire departments, the Emergency Management Agency and Homeland Security spent most of Tuesday morning trying to figure out what was caused the odor.
The Carmel Fire Department tweeted around 8 a.m. that they were receiving calls from people smelling gas in the area.
Numbers update: 145 responses by CFD in last 3 hours for the smell of gas. Still no detectable levels. We'll continue to check each one.
— Carmel Fire PIO (@CFD911runs) July 19, 2016
Behind the scenes, CFD tracked each run and wind direction allowing us to position our trucks for faster responses. pic.twitter.com/zRRrcYewtR
— Carmel Fire PIO (@CFD911runs) July 19, 2016
At first, authorities believed the smell originated from a Vectren plant, but Vectren officials said it did not.
We are responding to odorant calls being received, but no nat gas detected. We did not have an accidental release of mercaptan/natural gas.
— Vectren Indiana (@VectrenIndiana) July 19, 2016
At 9:30 a.m., a spokesperson for Citizens Energy said there was no gas leak in their system.
At this time, Citizens has not found a gas leak in our gas distribution system. We are, however, investigating each call we receive.
— Citizens Energy (@citizensenergy) July 19, 2016
A representative from the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department said a gas company in Marion County had released Mercaptan, which is the odor added to natural gas to make it smell. Mercaptan is not dangerous by itself.
That gas company, Marathon, said they've had no releases of that kind, and that the company doesn't even use Mercaptan.
Despite the apparent safety of odor, Butler University evacuated three buildings Tuesday morning: Robertson, Holcomb and the pharmacy building. The all-clear was given about 30 minutes later.
Around 11 a.m., Homeland Security became involved to find out what the source was. Kyle Erickson, the public information director for the Westfield Fire Department, said they weren't sure if it even was Mercaptan.
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management says Heritage Crystal Clean reported the chemical release, as required by permit, when an incident lasts for longer than one hour.
If you smelled the odor and want to file a complaint with IDEM, call (800) 451-6027, etc. 24464. Be prepared to give the wind direction, an approximate location, date and time the smell was noticed, and any adverse effects.
You can file a report anonymously but you have to make that request to IDEM.
Call 6 Investigates says records show Heritage Crystal Clean was inspected by IDEM earlier this year after complaints about white ash falling into neighborhoods.
The plant manager at HCC said the company installed a screen on the stack associated with the ash-like emissions.
IDEM says lab reports on the ash substance were, "well below the NIOSH recommended exposure limit thresholds."
Heritage Crystal Clean released a statement Tuesday night saying it doesn't believe the smell originated from its facility:
HCC operates a used oil recycling facility located on Tenth Street. We are committed to operating in compliance and being a good neighbor.
This morning we restarted our facility following a routine semi-annual shutdown. We notified a local utility and a government agency of an air release in connection with the facility restart. We do not believe that this shutdown and restart of our facility is connected to the odor problems reported throughout Indianapolis today, due to the nature of the odors and the geographic location where the odors were reported.
Consistent with our past practices, we intend to continue our investigation and will provide updates as appropriate.
On Wednesday, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management issued a statement saying the chemical release was harmless:
“IDEM has been in regular contact with Heritage Crystal Clean to determine additional information regarding yesterday’s discharge, such as the duration of the event and amounts of emissions potentially released. IDEM can confirm the materials released by Heritage Crystal Clean were not hazardous air pollutants under the federal Clean Air Act. Due in part to yesterday’s meteorological conditions – the high temperatures, high humidity levels, stagnant, heavy air and early morning fog – it is possible odors from various sources comingled and spread across central Indiana. While IDEM does not regulate odors, we remain vigilant in our investigations and response to complaints. The agency urges citizens to immediately report to the agency if the odor is observed. Citizens should describe the smell and any adverse effects; they should provide an approximate location, date and time the smell was noticed.”
