Smelly Gas Concerns Prompt Town Hall Meeting In Gloucester County

EAST GREENWICH TOWNSHIP, NJ — Cleanup continues at a Gloucester County truck stop, almost a week after a tanker began releasing a foul-smelling gas there that irritated noses for 50 miles.

Township and county residents with questions about the incident may join a town hall meeting Tuesday night at 6 p.m. Residents can attend on Zoom, or in person at the East Greenwich Municipal Building (159 Democrat Road, Mickleton NJ).

Representatives from TransChem and the Center for Toxicology and Public Health will join state and local officials for the town hall.

TransChem will also be setting up an Informational Center in the Berkley Square parking lot (141 Berkley Road, Clarksboro, NJ 08020) beginning on Tuesday to take in-person questions and to file claims, Gloucester County officials said.

What happened, and what's being done to contain it

On Wednesday, Aug. 10, people in Camden and Gloucester counties began reporting a bad smell in the air. That odor reached people across southern New Jersey and even into Philadelphia.

Law enforcement traced the smell to a TransChem USA tanker at the TA TravelCenter truck stop on Berkeley Road in East Greenwich Township. The truck was hauling a chemical identified as Lubrizol 1389, and began leaking two compounds that human noses are very sensitive to.

The smell has dissipated in the air, but may remain for some time. Related article: Woman Sues Lubrizol, TransChem USA After South Jersey Truck Leak

The Gloucester County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) said crews "are making good progress on mitigating the incident" in an update posted Monday afternoon.

The travel center was still closed as of Friday, according to 6ABC. No one picked up with Patch called Monday.

According to 6ABC, a TransChem representative told said the issue was with the product, not the tank. TransChem also said the driver was on a break when the chemical began releasing the smell into the air, 6ABC reported.

Lubrizol has told Patch they are not commenting on the incident beyond a statement posted last week.

Over the weekend, TransChem USA and local officials provided a frequently asked questions document about what happened.

Click here to read the fact sheet, or see the embedded post below.

"Based on the current information available, it appears that the emission stemmed from the decomposition of a fuel additive in the tanker, which produced hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans," officials said.

Monitored air levels of both compounds are safe for nearby residents and their pets to breathe, officials said. These compounds can be harmful in large concentrations.

Agencies including the Gloucester County OEM, state Department of Environmental Protection, federal Environmental Protection Agency, and local officials have been working with the companies to contain the leak. Environmental consulting firm Center for Toxicology and Environment Health (CTEH) and environmental cleanup company SPSI have also been on the scene, as well as representatives from TransChem and Lubrizol.

Over the weekend, crews did driving tests to test how the chemical would react when they drove the truck around.

"As product and tank temperatures and pressure remained low, additional movements were made within the TA Travel Center lot," the Gloucester County OEM said. "These movements, along with a Certified Weight Scale measurement to better determine remaining product amount, will be able to better determine the product stability and the potential for continued or increased chemical reactions."

The PBF Energy - Paulsboro Refinery Fire Department engineered a pressure relief device, which will help crews monitor what's inside the tank, and installed more temperature gauges.