A diesel fuel leak from a City of Richmond tractor spilled onto areas around DeBeck and Dolphin parks last week.
However, according to the city, the spills — which came from a grass mower last Friday — on the paved areas were later absorbed by a compound put down by city staff.
And the areas of grass affected were minimal, said city spokesperson Ted Townsend, adding that the fuel would “generally evaporate within a relatively short period of time.”
Townsend said DeBeck elementary was informed of the leak, but, after inspection, the field areas were deemed safe for children to play on.
Glenn Brown, the local resident who reported the leak, said the smell in the air all across the area was very strong.
“I couldn’t walk my dog on the grass there it was so bad; it was all over the field,” claimed Brown on Tuesday.
“I reported it to the City of Richmond, but I haven’t seen any one down here.”
Unfortunately, added Townsend, the leak wasn’t noticed until after the mower had left the park sites.
“Most of the actual fuel leak occurred along Francis Road while the mower was in transit, when the slow leak worsened due to higher speed operation of the vehicle,” Townsend explained via email.
“Around the same time the operator realized there was a leak, we received a complaint of a fuel spill at DeBeck.
“Our staff advised the school to keep children off the field until we could investigate. We returned to the school site, where we put down “absorb all” compound to soak up the leak on hard, paved surfaces where fuel had leaked.
“We inspected the school park field and found one area with evidence of fuel spill on a pathway at the back of the site. The site was not slippery and our staff decided not to use “absorb all” in that area as it could create a slipping hazard.”
