The Ventura City Council Ratifies A Local State Of Emergency Over Pierpont Gasoline Leak

Tuesday October 01, 2024

(Photos courtesy VPD and VFD)

For official information https://www.cityofventura.ca.gov/2570/36584/Emergency-Alert

     Update--The Ventura City Council Tuesday ratified a local state of emergency over the Pierpont gasoline leak hazardous materials incidents in September.

     They say the state of emergency should help the city gain access to resources, including state funding, that will aid recovery efforts.

     The state of emergency will last for 60 days.

     The funding will help speed up the process of addressing damage, hasten repairs, and ensure the prompt restoration of the city's infrastructure.

     It's believed that up to 2,000 gallons of gasoline leaked from the Sinclair gasoline station at Harbor Boulevard and Monmouth Way.

     Officials say it got into the sewer system and migrated at least a mile south.

     Hydrocarbon vapors from the fuel built up and created a potential threat to life and property.

     That prompted evacuation orders and warnings plus street closures on two days, Thursday, September 19th and Sunday September 22nd.

     In both cases, firefighters had to open manhole covers to allow the vapor concentration to dissipate.

     The area most impacted was along Bayshore Avenue south of Peninsula Street but the entire Pierpont community was impacted in one way or another at one time or another during the incidents.