OLDS — A team of propane experts has been called in to examine a propane leak that occurred at the Westview Co-op gas bar in Olds, which resulted in the evacuation of the nearby food store.
“We’ve got our FCL (Federated Co-operatives Limited) propane team coming out to do an inspection as part of our process,” Westview Co-op general manager Mike Isaak said during an interview.
“We need a specialist to come out and actually look at it.”
Fire crews were called to the scene at 6:21 p.m. on Oct. 3. Sixteen firefighters responded, along with RCMP and ambulance personnel, who helped maintain a safety perimeter.
Firefighters pushed the propane cloud away from the building and gas pumps by squirting high-pressure water streams at it.
As a result, within about five minutes they were able to get in close enough to close the main supply valve under the tank, Olds Fire Department Chief Justin Andrew said.
Once the cloud had dissipated, all staff and customers were allowed to return safely.
Firefighters remained on-scene for about 45 minutes.
“This type of incident is rare, but our firefighters are well trained in the process to manage this type of incident, due in large part to the fact that Olds Fire (Department) has a live fire pressurized propane training system at the fire training facility where this exact type of scenario has been rehearsed by all members of the department,” Andrew wrote in an email.
Isaak was impressed with how quickly firefighters arrived.
“They were actually there within 12 minutes of our call,” he said.
Isaak said the incident has served as a good opportunity for staff to review their safety protocols.
He said staff followed the procedures for situations like this the way they were supposed to.
However, he said, “we always do a debrief after each situation and we’ll do a review of that and make sure everybody’s aware of it and share it with our team as well.”
