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Pearce Petroleum Products

All POL/SITREP's for this site Pearce Petroleum Products
Mineola, TX - EPA Region VI
POLREP #1
Initial and Final POLREP
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U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
POLLUTION/SITUATION REPORT
Pearce Petroleum Products - Removal Polrep
Initial and Final Removal Polrep

EPA Emergency Response

UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Region VI

Subject: POLREP #1
Initial and Final POLREP
Pearce Petroleum Products

Mineola, TX
Latitude: 32.6618938 Longitude: -95.4897625


To:
From: Mike McAteer, OSC
Date: 3/13/2012
Reporting Period: March 13, 2012

1. Introduction
  1.1 Background
   
Site Number: n/a    Contract Number:  
D.O. Number:      Action Memo Date:  
Response Authority: OPA    Response Type: PRP Oversight
Response Lead: PRP    Incident Category: Removal Assessment
NPL Status: Non NPL    Operable Unit:
Mobilization Date: 3/13/2012    Start Date: 3/13/2012
Demob Date: 3/13/2012    Completion Date: 3/13/2012
CERCLIS ID: n/a    RCRIS ID:
ERNS No.:    State Notification:
FPN#: none    Reimbursable Account #:

1.1.1 Incident Category
Oversight of PRP response

1.1.2 Site Description
Pearce Petroleum Products is a fuel distributor.  The property is approximately 1 acre in size and has been in business for approximately 80 years.  The facility consists of an office building (destroyed in fire) along with two above ground storage tanks containing gasoline.  One tank is 10,000 gallons and the other approximately 20,000 gallons.  The two tanks are located within a secondary containment structure (concrete wall approximately 18 inches high) that appeared to have earthen floor.

1.1.2.1 Location
The facility is located at 302 S. Johnson Street in Mineola, Wood County, Texas.  The site is located along the south side of the downtown area of Mineola in a mixed commercial and residential area.  The nearest resident borders the facility on the south.

1.1.2.2 Description of Threat
On Sunday March 11, 2012, at approximately 7:45 pm, a fire started at the Pearce Petroleum Products facility located at 302 S. Johnson Street in Mineola, Wood County, Texas. The fire started when a riding lawnmower backfired and caught the grass on fire which then caught the office building on fire. The fire then spread to the adjoining riser pipe that was connected to a 10,000 gallon above ground gasoline tank. The fuel in the pipe continued to feed the fire until it was shut off by the responding fire department. The 10,000 gallon fuel tank was scorched by the fire but remained intact. 

Approximately 250,000 gallons of water were used by the fire department to suppress the fire. The facility estimates that no more than possibly 200 to 500 gallons of gasoline were released because of the fire although, the assumption was that most of the fuel burned up in the fire and was therefore not contained in the fire suppressant water that flushed across and off the facility. Berms were placed downgradient of the fire area to contain fire suppressant water. According to the facility's cleanup contractor (SWS), they had inspected the runoff areas downgradient including a creek and there was no visible sheen or product.  The fire was declared "out" at approximately midnight.


1.1.3 Preliminary Removal Assessment/Removal Site Inspection Results
TCEQ responded to the fire on Sunday March 11 and OSCs McAteer and Mason visited the facility when EPA was made aware of the event on Tuesday March 13. TCEQ has directed a surface scrape of soil from in the area downgradient of the fire with confirmation sampling to follow. 

2. Current Activities
  2.1 Operations Section
    2.1.1 Narrative

2.1.2 Response Actions to Date
The fire was extinguished by midnight on March 11, 2012.  As of March 13 when EPA conducted an investigation of the incident, the facility's contractor (SWS) was still on site conducting a surface soil scrape on downgradient areas of the fire onsite.  SWS plans to collect grid off and collect confirmation soil samples after the scrape is complete and analyze for BTEX and TPH.   Results will be provided to TCEQ.

2.1.3 Enforcement Activities, Identity of Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs)

2.1.4 Progress Metrics

Waste Stream Medium Quantity Manifest # Treatment Disposal
           
           
           


  2.2 Planning Section
    No information available at this time.

  2.3 Logistics Section
    No information available at this time.

  2.4 Finance Section
    No information available at this time.

  2.5 Other Command Staff
    No information available at this time.

3. Participating Entities
  No information available at this time.

4. Personnel On Site
  No information available at this time.

5. Definition of Terms
  No information available at this time.

6. Additional sources of information
  No information available at this time.

7. Situational Reference Materials
  No information available at this time.


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