Kate Dubinski | London Free Press Reporter
Many Londoners woke yesterday to mysterious smell of running cabbage not the most appealing wake up call.
It was late afternoon before the sources was identified as a tanker truck transporting a substance used to give natural gas its distinctive smell. The substance is mercaptan, an additive to propane and natural gas – which is odorless – as an early warning for leaks.
At first, yesterday’s mysterious odor detected mainly in the cities northeast baffled emergency crews and left 91 operators of swamped as residents called in to report it.
Police, fire, ambulance, and union gas officials look for the source of the smell, which they said pose no health risk.
“We found out a vehicle was transporting the stuff in tanks through our region and the mystery of the environment has been called”, said David Kitterman, deputy Fire Chief.
“The tanks have been sealed”, and the ministry was investigating, he added.
The 911 calls began just after 6 am, with two dispatchers on duty, the volume so heavy more dispatchers were called in to help, Kitterman said.
The smel, similar to rotting cabbage, can also occur naturally, said Graham Pollett, the area’s medical officer of health.
“People with certain lung conditions and asthma could be affected by the smell,” he said, but there are no long-term health risks associated with mercaptan.
Source: the London Free Press
