Rotten Egg Smell in Concord Building Caused by Sewer Gas

CONCORD, NH — The Capitol Commons building on South Main Street in Concord was evacuated this morning due to hydrogen sulfide, a component of “sewer gas,” according to Concord Fire Chief Dan Andrus. Fire and Rescue teams were sent to the building at just before 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 3, 2016, for a report of a smell of “rotten egg smell” in the building. Crews arrived at the scene and confirmed that the smell was hydrogen sulfide.

“The building was evacuated and crews remained on scene for over four hours, monitoring and ventilating the structure and searching for the source of the odor,” Andrus stated in a press release. “Concord’s General Services Department responded with a vacuum truck and cleaned two street accesses of grease. The source was eventually identified as a dry plumbing trap in the building.”

The scene was cleared to the building owners at 3:43 p.m. and there were no injuries or other long term effects apparent, he noted.