2 Investigators: Gasoline Smell Persists After Tank Leak In Bridgeport
(CBS) – Imagine the inside of your home smells like gasoline.
Imagine it's been that way for months.
Now, imagine that state and local agencies know the cause -- but not what to do about it.
That's what 2 Investigator Brad Edwards discovered in Chicago's Bridgeport neighborhood.
It began in December 2016 when a leak was discovered in an underground fuel storage tank at a gas station near 31st and Union.
The 10,000-gallon tank was cleaned and filled with concrete. Contaminated soil was removed and recovery wells drilled.
But Frank Christiano says the gas smell inside his home hasn't faded.
"You can't be breathing in gas and feeling good," says Christiano, who lives about a half-block from the gas station.
The Chicago Department of Public Health and Illinois Environmental Protection Agency say they're trying to help Christiano and his neighbors.
But so far, no solution has been found. And the agencies say they don't know why the smell persists.
A spokesperson for the IEPA says an additional trench – to soak up extra gas in the ground – was to be built this week.
2 Investigators found no work had been done as of yet.
"Somebody needs to fix this problem so we can remain in this neighborhood," says Dawn Heisley, a dentist whose office is nearby.
