State officials find water in fuel tank

State officials have confirmed that nearly 6 inches of water was found in an underground gas storage tank at a Fountain City fuel station and that remediation must take place before gas can be sold again from that tank.

After conducting an inspection, Indiana Department of Health’s Division of Weights and Measures found 5.75 inches of water in the bottom of the 87-octane underground storage tank at Fountain City Food Mart.

Sales of 87- and 89-octane gasolines were immediately stopped at the Marathon station at 402 S. U.S. 27, according to Lisa Welch, IDOH’s media relations coordinator.

Welch said the station was given instructions for remediation and to contact IDOH for retesting prior to resuming sales. As of Oct. 7, IDOH hadn’t been contacted for retesting.

Welch shared these remediation steps:

• Find and repair all sources of water intrusion, not just the fill cap.
• Remove water and/or phase separation. Ethanol and Bio blended fuels cannot have more than ¼” indication of water and/or phase separation.
• Adjust remaining gasoline, as needed, for reduced octane that frequently drops 2 points; 87 gas might require the addition of premium gasoline; 93 gas might need to be relabeled to 91 or transferred to 87 storage.
• Purge pipelines to all appropriate fuel dispensers to remove contamination between storage and dispensers. Don’t underestimate the gallons required to properly purge.
• Replace all appropriate fuel filters.
• Call Indiana Weights and Measures for inspection and retest of fuels in storage. Be prepared to provide documentation of all above service work.

Customers seeking compensation for any expenses or damage caused by a bad fuel purchase must work directly with the gas station management or with the help of an insurance company and/or legal counsel, Welch said. IDOH isn’t involved in that process beyond the documentation of findings based on investigation of complaints.