HRT: Contractor to pay for fuel spill

HAMPTON, Va (WAVY) – The clean-up continues after gasoline leaked from an underground tank at a Hampton Roads Transit fueling station.

10 On Your Side learned about 1,200 gallons of gas started spilling more than a week ago during an industrial accident. The spill went unreported until Tuesday.

According to HRT’s Public Affairs Manager Tom Holden, contractors were upgrading a leak detection system for the agency’s fueling station in Hampton, when someone damaged an 8,000 gallon tank with a back hoe.

“There was about 5800 gallons in the tank at the time. The spill itself was about 12-hundred,” Holden said.
HRT asked the Hampton Fire Marshal’s office to check out the site on Victoria Boulevard. Crews from the hazardous materials team evaluated the potential safety risks and determined there was not a threat to public safety. That was Tuesday, many days after the accident.

Holden said the contractor didn’t alert HRT about the back hoe incident in a timely manner. “The damage itself occurred earlier. We should have been told sooner.”

Hampton Fire Lt. Anthony Chittum told WAVY.com, “the damage happened on April 19th. Someone reported it [this Tuesday] to HRT. They immediately contacted us and a clean-up company.”

WAVY.com confirmed a crew from A and M Services Plus operated the back hoe that hit the underground fuel tank.

Holden said A and M will be responsible for all aspects of the damage.

“We expect repairs to be made, the fuel to be cleaned up and that it will not cost the public one cent,” he said.

When reached by telephone, A and M’s owner Quincy Martin declined to comment on the fuel spill. The company’s insurance will likely cover the clean-up and repair costs.

Hampton Fire’s Environmental crimes inspector will handle the investigation into the incident itself and the fact that it went unreported.

Contamination specialty company, IMS Environmental Service, Inc., a subsidiary of HEPACO, Inc. was hired to clean up.