Contractor strikes jet fuel pipeline in Upper Merion, prompting shelter-in-place and road closure

A jet fuel pipeline was punctured by a drilling crew in Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, on Thursday afternoon, sending a large volume of fuel across a commercial lot and into a nearby quarry, officials told several outlets. 6abc reported that nobody was hurt.

The leak was first reported at about 3 p.m. on November 5, FOX 29 and 6abc said. The site was near Insurance Auto Auction, along the stretch of Route 23, also known as River Road, from B Street to East 4th Street. Part of the roadway was shut down, and people in the vicinity were told to shelter in place.

Upper Merion Police Chief Blaine Leis told 6abc that the crew, an outside firm hired by PECO, was boring holes for new electric towers when it pierced a 14-inch line carrying jet fuel. PECO told 6abc the firm was doing work for the utility and that its electric and gas customers had not been affected.

According to Leis, the fuel spread over the auction lot and drained into the neighboring quarry. "All the fuel ran down into the bottom of that quarry," he told 6abc, adding that the quarry's water pumps had been turned off. Township police said the spill stayed within the auction site and Glasgow Quarry, The Philadelphia Inquirer and FOX 29 reported.

Figures for the size of the spill do not match. 6abc cited State Rep. Tim Briggs as giving an early estimate of roughly 60,000 gallons of jet fuel and kerosene. The Inquirer, however, quoted an Upper Merion official as saying the operator believed the total was in the hundreds of thousands of gallons.

Outlets also gave differing accounts of ownership. Leis told 6abc the line belongs to Sunoco, which he said shut it off right away, and township police said they coordinated with Sunoco Pipeline to seal off the damaged segment. A Sunoco spokesperson, though, told the Inquirer that Energy Transfer owns and runs the line. The Inquirer noted that Energy Transfer holds the general partner interest and stock in Sunoco LP, and said it could not reach Energy Transfer for comment Thursday night.

Reports also differ on when the alert ended. The Inquirer said police called off the shelter-in-place order at about 5:20 p.m., while 6abc reported that both the order and the closures were lifted a little after 6 p.m. Police said the public was not in danger, the Inquirer reported.

Fire companies from around the county were called in. Leis told 6abc that because few hydrants serve the area, crews had to run lengthy hose lines to cover the fuel with foam. Lewis Environmental Group, based in Royersford, joined the cleanup, 6abc said. FOX 29 reported that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection were checking air quality while remediation went on.

Compiled by True News from reporting by The Philadelphia Inquirer, 6abc Action News and FOX 29 Philadelphia. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/817