Fill out this form to email this article to a friend
Diesel fuel pipeline ruptures, forcing 12 homes to evacuate
By Times Staff Writer
Published September 17, 2005
TAMPA - Residents in East Hillsborough County were forced to evacuate their homes early Friday after an underground diesel fuel pipe along Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard between Forbes and Turkey Creek roads near Plant City ruptured, causing contamination threats to neighborhood wells.
The high-pressure transmission pipe owned by Central Florida Pipeline Co. runs from the Port of Tampa to Orlando. When workers at a company control center noticed the pipe's pressure had suddenly dropped, they immediately shut down the system, said Hillsborough County Fire Rescue spokesman Ray Yeakley.
The pipe had been ruptured for a few seconds when it was shut off, but standing diesel fuel still continued to seep out. Officials estimated that about 1,000 gallons was lost before the leak was stopped.
Between 25 and 30 residents of 12 homes were bused to local hotels with meal vouchers provided by the pipeline company until the initial danger of the spill subsided, and residents returned to their homes later Friday morning, with power restored to all but one home and one business.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard was closed until 8 a.m.
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue spent Friday digging to see what had caused the underground rupture, and attempting to determine the amount of environmental damage the spill caused.
The fuel is being pumped from the pipe and transferred to diesel tankers used for normal transport.
[Last modified September 17, 2005, 02:15:31]
Share your thoughts on this story
|
News
Fifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.
Print
Email story
Comment
Email editor
