Natural gas smell in Charlotte’s air again after second release mistake
A bad smelling, yet harmless, gas odor is making its way through Charlotte for the second time this month, officials said.
Late Monday afternoon, Piedmont Natural Gas unintentionally released mercaptan, Charlotte Fire said in a news release. Mercaptan is a non-hazardous chemical “that is injected into natural gas to give a distinctive smell, making it easy to detect,” officials wrote in a statement to the public. Natural gas itself has no smell.
Charlotte Fire began receiving numerous calls about a strong natural gas or chemical odor in multiple locations in the Hidden Valley and University City areas, the news release said. The odorous release happened near the 1400 block of Tom Hunter Road, which is off Sugar Creek Road, near Interstate 85.
The smell should go away soon due to current weather patterns, according to Charlotte Fire.
Anyone who believes they’re smelling a natural gas odor or having a medical or life-threatening emergency should call 911, Charlotte Fire said.
Legacy Environmental Services’ mistake
Legacy Environmental Services, LLC, released mercaptan during a recycling process of metal tanks at its location on North Graham Street earlier this month, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.
The odor permeated through Charlotte due to temperature inversion. That happens when the air temperature increases at higher elevations, trapping colder air and odors closer to the surface, according to the National Weather Service.
Legacy reported that four small tanks were empty when they were picked up for removal and disposal, the company said in a statement to the Observer.
Due to the odor, several county buildings were evacuated — including the Mecklenburg County Courthouse. District Court also closed early even after Charlotte Fire officials gave the all-clear.
The smell did dissipate by mid-afternoon.
Legacy did not apologize for the incident, but its statement said the tanks have been resealed and would be prepared for disposal at another location. Authorities were notified at the time of the release, the company said.
Mecklenburg County Air Quality found that Legacy did violate the county’s objectionable odor rule by releasing the odors, the Observer previously reported. Legacy will need to provide information “that will help determine next steps,” Megan Green, Air Quality mobile sources program manager, said.
The agency’s investigation into the incident is still ongoing, Green said.
This story was originally published July 25, 2022 at 4:28 PM.
