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HomeMy WebLinkAbout5't e// otyo[san lulsoBtspo FIRE DEPARTMENT 748 Pismo Street r San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 o 805/543-6046 IUONTEREY STREET GASOTINE LEAK, 0n 24 July 1973 at 1100 hours, Station report of strong gas odor near the intersec Pepper. Extensive monitoring of Monterey S Pepper was done by Fire Department personne paths for gasoline vapors were checked freq through 28 January L974. 0n 27 July 1973, storage tank at Chuckr s Economy Station at discovered. Fire Marshal Don Kaye ordered rernoved. 1rtion tree 1. uentale L37Ithis esponded to a of Monterey and t between Toro and A11 possible escape Ly from 24 JuIy 1973 ak in an underground Monterey was tank drained and On approxirnately 22 August I973, Fire Marshal Kaye ordered tests of all underground gasoline storage tanks in this area. As a result of these tests, it was discovered that the storage tank at the County garage had a substantial leak and would have to be taken out of service. The gasoline leak problem along Monterey Street subsided either due to corrective measures or natural causes unti]. 24 November 1975. On that date at 1514 hours, a report of a fire at Johnson and Monterey was received at Station 1. This fire was apparently started by a punp being used to pump water out of a telephone company vault at Johnson and Monterey. It was discovered that gasoline had seeped into the vault and was punped out and ignited by the gasoline engine driving the pump. 0nce again, considerable tine from 24 November 1975 to October 1976 was spent by Fire Department personnel on this gas leak. fn an attempt to collect gasoline that had saturated the soil downhill fron the Economy Service Station, a perforated collecting pipe six inches in diameter was buried about five feet. It ran from just below Pepper to about thirty feet above Johnson Avenue and about two feet fron the east curb along Monterey Street. is system, in a period of eleven months from December I975 ber I976, collected 1,503.86 gallons of gasoline. The majority gasoline, approxinately 900 ga1lons, was purnped out in r or January. On 8 November L976, invitations were extended by Fire Marshal Mike Park to Gu1f, Arco, and Union 0i1 Companies, Pacific Telephone, Art Hird of the City Public Services Department, and Western Gas and 0i1. This meeting was held on 15 November 1976 to discuss the Monterey Street gasoline leak operation. No official stands were made although Gulf Oi1 did say they would continue to work on the problen. Thto Octoof this Decembe 'rl\I Monterey Street Gasoline Leak Page 2 After continued pumping, Fire Marshal park had Gulf 0i1 C_ompany sink 8 foot test holes around their station on Pepper andMonterey. {l-so, they_put down test holes along Monterey ind severalat Arco on Johnson and Mont-erey. The holes along the lbwer edgeof the Cuesta Station and the ones along Montere! down to Johnlon _t_11 produ_ced read=ings and an odor similar to gasbtine. The FireMarshal then asked Gulf oil Cornpany to dig two trenches, onealong the front of the Cuesta Station and-one along the lower sid.e.flgy did this by dig_ging !h" trenches about 8 feet-deep and 2 feetwide (nlotogr?phs taken of this operation). Raw gasoline wasobserved flowing into the trenchei from the service station side ofthe trenches. Also, they placed two 24 inch pipes, with narrow cutsalong-the side vertically into the trenches. -Purnping was then doneat this location, however, the source seemed to dry up rapidly. The lwo 24 i"g! pipgs -are_still existing and can be used to purnp ttretrenches if needed., Both pipes are locked with a Fire D^epartnentpadlock and the nechanic has the key.