A medical incident at a local gas station and gasoline spill into a storm-pond tested the response of emergency officials Monday.
It was all a test – an emergency scenario planned by officials with Shell and the Town of Okotoks – but it was an important exercise to ensure proper plans are in place if the real thing ever happens.
“While we have a lot of plans in place, the only way to know if they’re working and if they suit the needs of the community is to test them,” said John Smith, Shell downstream external relations advisor.
“To actively partner with the Town is great in situations like this because it lets us ensure the safety of community and the customers.”
The scenario involved responding to both a medical emergency and environmental situation at the Shell gas station on 32 Street and North Railway Avenue.
Under the scenario, an individual with a fuel truck refilling the station’s tanks had a medical emergency. At the same time, there was a leak of fuel from the truck that drained into storm sewers on site.
Officials with Shell, a fuel transportation company, as well as the Okotoks Fire Department, RCMP and Town administration were all on scene.
Smith said the response to the situation at all levels, from staff at the retail location, up to emergency personnel and Shell responders.
He said it’s important to train to extreme scenarios.
“We regularly drill with local communities and local first responders to help us train and exercise our responses in a safe environment,” said Smith. “It helps us train and tailor our emergency response plans for the communities that we operate in.”
Shell approached the Town about bringing the fire department on board.
The Town asked if the scenario could be expanded to include the spill.
Water dyed blue with a bio-degradable dye was poured into the parking lot to simulate a large gasoline spill.
Deputy fire chief Dwight Seymour said the Town wanted to see where the “gasoline” could go once it ended up in the storm-sewer system and to test the Town’s capability to respond.
“We hope we know where it’s going to go if it gets in the storm drains, but this is also to test to ensure that everything heads where we thing it’s going to go,” he said.
Seymour said they expected they expected to see the blue water drain into a storm retention pond behind Seaman Stadium. He said the dye will allow the Town to see if the water ends up anywhere else.
“If it does get into the wastewater system or the river we’ll be able to see,” said Seymour.
If the spilled gasoline did make it into the storm pond, he said the Town would work with Shell to contain it and clean it up.
“There’s the transport company and Shell the retailer, they’re responsible for the spill,” he said. “What we do is we mitigate to the point where we can work with them to clean up the spill.
Potential responses could include putting down a layer of foam on the pond to prevent ignition of gasoline. If it was a real emergency, he said there could be the potential to have to evacuate buildings.
Ultimately, Seymour said it was a valuable exercise for everyone involved.
“We think it’s a great exercise, not just as a fire department, but also the Town as a whole,” he said. “This spill could happen anywhere.”
