Published Friday 26 March 2021 at 15:47
The substance which caused mystery smells across central Blackburn earlier this week has been identified as petrol.
The petrol, which found its way into the sewer network, prompted calls from residents and led to a multi-agency investigation co-ordinated by Blackburn with Darwen Council, United Utilities and Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service.
A clean-up is now under way and the smell is subsiding. Showers expected over the weekend will also help to dissipate any existing odours.
Anyone who notices the smell is being advised that it quickly disappears when properties are ventilated and to open their windows.
The first report of petrol-like/solvent odours coming from the drains under Blackburn town centre was received on Thursday 18 March, with more calls from local residents and businesses from Monday of this week.
After a painstaking inspection of the town’s sewer system, including taking samples for laboratory analysis, United Utilities, working with experts from the Council’s environmental protection team, found the source to be petrol which had leaked into the ground and found its way into a nearby sewer pipe.
The petrol leak, from a third party source, was quickly stopped and engineers are flushing pipes to remove the final traces. As an added precaution, to prevent any more ingress from the ground, engineers are also preparing to install an impermeable lining into a section of sewer nearest the contamination.
The Council is in contact with those who have been affected by the leak and are assisting partners in the emergency response with their investigations.
Joanna Nolan from United Utilities’ trade effluent team, said:
We used cameras as well as substance testing to confirm that it was petrol that had leaked into the sewerage system.
We have teams of engineers who are currently out flushing the sewers to remove the petrol from the system, and carry out emergency repairs.
John Wood, Blackburn with Darwen Council’s Environmental Protection Principal Officer, said:
A multi-agency approach has proved successful in agreeing a swift response.
Now that we believe we’ve identified the source of the leak, we will consider appropriate action to take as more information is gathered by investigating officers.
Professor Dominic Harrison, Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council’s Director of Public Health, said:
Whilst the smell has been unpleasant for those affected in the area around the town centre, we do not believe that there is any immediate risk to health.
Our advice to anybody affected by the smell is to ventilate their property to get rid of any odour. If there are any other health concerns, the advice would be to contact your GP or contact the NHS helpline on 111.