Latest news with #ChrisCase
CTV News
03-07-2025
- CTV News
Wheatley library remains closed
Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) The Wheatley library, a branch of the Chatham-Kent Public Library, will stay closed as the investigation into the smell of gas continues. The Municipality of Chatham-Kent ensured there is no risk to public safety at this time, but residents are encouraged to avoid the area. The initial incident took place on July 1. The library will remain closed until further notice. 'As the investigation continues, our top priority is public safety,' said CK Fire Chief Chris Case. 'We are working closely with technical experts and provincial partners to determine the source of the gas and take any actions necessary to protect the community.' Up-to-date information is available here.
CTV News
02-07-2025
- General
- CTV News
Crews continue monitoring gas odour in Wheatley as residents remain on edge
Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) Emergency crews continue to monitor a gas odour first reported outside the Wheatley library on Canada Day, as concern lingers in the community and experts warn the issue may be part of a much larger, long-term challenge. Chatham-Kent Fire Chief Chris Case said local emergency officials were acting on a call made after someone reported the smell of gas near the Talbot Street branch. 'This was exactly what we were asking for,' said Case. 'We asked people if they smelled gas or if there were any issues, they should call us. And that's exactly what they did.' Officials say no gas is currently being detected in the area. However, monitoring and investigation efforts continue at the site — just a few blocks from the location of a devastating explosion in 2021 that injured 20 people and levelled buildings. Wheatley gas odour investigation July 2025 Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) 'We still have firefighters and engineers who are visiting not just this site, but the original site of the explosion,' said Case. 'Those sites get visited once or twice a day just to check that everything's working, and to check that we don't have any issues. So, there's a constant presence going back and forth onto the site.' Residents say the renewed smell has brought back difficult memories. 'It's going to go on like this for a while,' said Wheatley resident, Ron Shaw. 'People are going to be a little bit uptight about it until they finally figured out exactly what's going on.' Shaw said there's uncertainty and tension in the community. Wheatley gas odour investigation July 2025 Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) 'People are on edge right now because of it. If they smell anything at all, they're going to, they're certainly going to say something. We'll just have to wait and see,' he said. 'After what happened to the corner, nothing seems as bad. I mean, right now, even if they do smell it, it's not going to ignite like it did before. Just a matter of finding out where it's coming from.' Shaw said they go by what they hear, and right now, there's a lot of uncertainty in the town. All anyone knows is they smelled gas. 'They're going to be careful and do what they have to do,' he said. 'I mean, if there was anything really dangerous, you wouldn't be allowed here. You wouldn't be able to get this close. So, let's see what happens.' Case acknowledged those fears and said it's an issue many Ontario communities will be living with for years to come. 'We always say that we get paid to worry so you don't have to. Which I don't think would be fair the people of Wheatley who are living with this concern, this obvious concern,' he said. 'As you've heard from us, from the province, this is a major issue with over 20,000 known wells in Ontario. We will work to deal with this specific well. We'll work to either put a stack on it or to permanently close it, as the investigations continue.' Case added that it is something that emergency responders and the community will be planning for and living with for a long time. '[Dealing with] Smells of gas and potentially finding unknown wells, or wells leaking, and being able to deal with them without causing too much concern to the community and without causing too much disruption. But we always err on the side of caution,' he said. Expand Autoplay 1 of 14 Wheatley gas odour investigation July 2025 Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation July 2025 Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation July 2025 Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation July 2025 Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation July 2025 Monitoring continues at the Wheatley library where residents could smell gas. The site seen in Wheatley, Ont. on July 2, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation Ventilation for the water well hydrogen sulfide was confirmed to be coming out of in Wheatley, Ont., seen on June 27, 2025. (Bob Bellacicco/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation Chatham-Kent police seen on scene of a gas odour investigation in Wheatley, Ont. on June 26, 2025. (Travis Fortnum/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation Liquid rising from underground behind the Chatham-Kent Public Library in Wheatley, Ont. on June 26, 2025. (Source: Submitted by a Wheatley resident) Wheatley gas odour investigation Chatham-Kent police seen on scene of a gas odour investigation in Wheatley, Ont. on June 26, 2025. (Travis Fortnum/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation Liquid rising from underground behind the Chatham-Kent Public Library in Wheatley, Ont. on June 26, 2025. (Source: Submitted by a Wheatley resident) Wheatley gas odour investigation Wheatley Area Arena, the temporary shelter site for affected residents by the gas odour investigation in Wheatley, Ont. on June 26, 2025. (Travis Fortnum/CTV News Windsor) Wheatley gas odour investigation Liquid rising from underground behind the Chatham-Kent Public Library in Wheatley, Ont. on June 26, 2025. (Source: Submitted by a Wheatley resident) Wheatley gas odour evacuation Source: Adam Thomas. Wheatley gas odour investigation Liquid rising from underground behind the Chatham-Kent Public Library in Wheatley, Ont. on June 26, 2025. (Source: Submitted by a Wheatley resident) Maurice Dusseault, an Adjunct Professor at the University of Waterloo, who has researched oil and gas well integrity, said these kinds of situations are the result of Ontario's aging infrastructure of both documented and undocumented wells. 'The moment you smell rotten eggs, there's an issue. But the good thing is, is that our noses are extremely sensitive, and we can detect rotten egg smell down to less than one parts per million,' Dusseault said. 'Unfortunately, this problem is going to be with us for many, many decades into the future because we have about 27,000 known wells in Ontario and perhaps as many as 10 to 15,000 undocumented wells in Ontario that were drilled back in the 1800s and 1900s. This legacy is going to haunt us for generations to come, as we find these old wells that are undocumented, one after another… and Wheatley is just the most recent example of this process.' He added that there are no easy or inexpensive fixes. 'It's not cheap. This is the problem,' Dusseault said. 'A practical solution is not easily available because how do you identify the pathway to the surface?' As of Wednesday, gas was no longer being detected at the library site, but Chatham-Kent officials said the location remains under active observation.
CBC
27-06-2025
- Health
- CBC
Portion of Wheatley, Ont., evacuated for gas leak 4 years after gas explosion rocked town
More residents of Wheatley, Ont., have now been evacuated from their homes after first responders found hydrogen sulfide gas "bubbling" in the area near the community's library. In a statement released Thursday evening, the Municipality of Chatham-Kent said the evacuation zone had been expanded beyond Foster Street to include all residents within 100 metres of the site, for a total of 60 homes. An evacuation centre has been established. "The evacuation site, located at 196 Erie St. N, will be open to affected residents for the duration of the evacuation. No timeframe has yet been established," the municipality said in a statement. Chatham-Kent's fire chief reported on social media Thursday afternoon that crews responded around 1:45 p.m. to reports of "a strong smell of gas." "When we arrived, we found an area at the back of the library that is bubbling with water and gas coming up, which we confirmed is hydrogen sulfide," said Chief Chris Case on X. Teams on site now include Chatham-Kent first responders, as well as employment and social services, victims services and local utilities. The municipality also noted a hazardous materials team from Windsor and geological scientists from the University of Windsor are attending, as are representatives from the ministries of environment, natural resources and emergency preparedness. Parts of downtown Wheatley were levelled in 2021 when an abandoned gas well exploded injuring 20 people. Last October, town officials announced that the well, at 17 Talbot St. E., had been drilled, cased and cemented, and a monitoring well established in 2021 had stopped venting gas, including hydrogen sulfide. 'A terrible thing to happen again' The officials said at the time they were "optimistic" that gas emission issues in the area may be resolved. "We know this is a terrible thing to happen again, however all the agencies are here working so we just ask for your co-operation while we try and work out what's going on and try and get the best result we can," Case said on Thursday. Hydrogen sulfide is a colourless gas with a characteristic rotten egg smell that can be released from wastewater treatment systems, oil and gas facilities, livestock operations, pulp and paper mills and mining operations, according to information on the Health Canada website. WATCH | Downtown Wheatley gas explosion from summer 2021: Video of Wheatley explosion 3 years ago Duration 0:44 It can also be released from inactive oil and gas wells. Natural sources include volcanoes, hot springs, petroleum crude oil deposits, decomposing plants and animals and normal bodily functions. One gas technician whose business was affected by the 2021 explosion said the situation is "a little unnerving." Doug Walker, who owns Walker Tetra Mechanical, lost a van in the explosion in 2021. 'A little concerned' He said he had enough equipment on his truck on Thursday to get him through Friday's jobs. But if the incident proves to be serious, "then I'm right back to where we started again." "I don't even want to think about it," he said. "I don't want to think about it. I really don't." Area resident Al Ringrose said Thursday's incident also had him feeling "a little concerned." "We were evacuated for a couple of years," he said. "We thought we had everything taken care of now, and yeah, so it looks like there's still issues." Another resident, Jeff Edwards, said he didn't know what to expect after first responders ordered him to leave the area Thursday. He left his apartment above the Dollar Haven and Discount store Thursday without even bringing his pills, he said. "I got food up there too," said Edwards, who is from the area but wasn't living there in the aftermath of the 2021 explosion. "I had chicken out for supper, but I don't think it's going to be very good if it lasts too long." Walker said he first noticed the smell of gas while unloading two of his trucks on Thursday. "Everybody was coming out of their stores saying that we could smell … something," he said. He began checking gas metres but couldn't see a problem, so he called 911. "None of us want to go through this again, ever, ever," he said, referring to the 2021 explosion. Police are urging the public to stay away from the area until further notice.
