MIPC sets virtual public meeting July 7 to update homeowners on jet fuel spill
MIPC will hold a virtual public meeting July 7 at 6 p.m. to update Aston, Upper Chichester and Bethel homeowners and the public on the current status of the Chelsea Tank farm gasoline leak last winter that spilled 378,000 gallons of fuel from one of its tanks.
To attend the meeting, email MIPC1@monroe-energy.com. The meeting link will be emailed to everyone who signs up three days before the meeting. The public is also invited to submit questions prior to the meeting at the same email address. Interested parties can also call MIPC at 610-364-8426.
MIPC, a subsidiary of Monroe Energy, has been cleaning up the spill throughout the first half of this year.
The incident started last August when a Monroe Pipeline operator noticed a faint odor while making routine checks in the northwest corner of the Chelsea Tank Farm, according to the company.
The source of the odor was found to be a gasoline and water mixture, about 2% gasoline to 98% water, emanating from a concrete stormwater drainage pipe. The company said it began investigating and containing the leak at that time, but by December, MIPC reported that it had grown to 378,000 gallons.
MIPC traced it to a hole in one of the tanks after months of extensive investigations. The cause of the leak has not been disclosed although State Rep. Craig Williams claimed someone had deliberately drilled a quarter-inch hole in the bottom of the tank.
The company has been testing nearby water wells, tracing the progress of the plume of gasoline and holding regular office hours to inform residents. Recently it had to relocate one family temporarily while it remediate benzene fumes in the family’s basement.
