Photo provided by Lebanon Fire.
Wednesday night at 5:11 pm Bat201, E211, L213, BCEMS, and LPD were dispatched to the intersection of Atlas Dr. and Cyprian Way on a ruptured gas line. While in route fire crews were advised an excavator hit an unmarked gas line. Upon arrival public safety personnel could smell mercaptan (rotten eggs) in the area. Natural gas is odorless; mercaptan is the foul-smelling odorant that is added to natural gas so it can be detected. The smell of mercaptan does not indicate the amount of gas in the area. Fire and Center Point Energy crews monitored the area with gas meters. The roads, yards, and neighboring houses were constantly monitored for the lower explosive levels of natural gas. Only one house was evacuated, that home had reached 40% of the lower explosive level. Out of an abundance of caution, electricity was shut off in the areas near the leak. Natural gas becomes dangerous when it is concentrated between 5% to 17% of the total volume of ambient air. The 40% detected represents the percentage towards the 5%. To clarify,
the evacuated house had less than half the concentration of natural gas needed to reach the lower explosive limit. The leak was secured at 8:38pm.
Call 911 if you smell mercaptan in your area. Please note the smell of mercaptan often travels further than natural gas.
If anyone has additional questions please call the City of Lebanon Fire Department Headquarters at 765 -482-8827 and ask for an Administrative Chief.
