Tara Jean Stevens said the 91裸聊视频渁pocalyptic91裸聊视频� stench that blanketed the Metro Vancouver community of Delta on Tuesday night was so heavy her car and garage still smelled of rotten eggs Wednesday morning.

91裸聊视频淚 had a headache all night,91裸聊视频� said Stevens, a radio host on Wave 98.3. 91裸聊视频淚 never get headaches 91裸聊视频� it felt thick in the air, even though you couldn91裸聊视频檛 see it.91裸聊视频�

The source was a FortisBC station near Ladner Trunk Road.

The explanation about the cause has shifted, with FortisBC attributing it to an 91裸聊视频渆quipment leak91裸聊视频� in a social media post on Tuesday afternoon, adding later that the leaked gas had high levels of a harmless odour additive.

It said Wednesday in another social media post the smell was 91裸聊视频渄ue to a controlled release91裸聊视频� of gas, while a statement on the FortisBC website described the source of the smell as a 91裸聊视频渕inor leak91裸聊视频� that was detected during the controlled release.

Regardless of the source, the chemical that caused the smell was mercaptan, which is typically added to odourless gas supplies so leaks are easier to detect.

The gas provider is being criticized for a lack of transparency and timely explanation about the stench Delta Mayor George Harvie said led to emergency services being flooded with calls.

Stevens said she first noticed the smell around 3 p.m. Tuesday when her son walked in the front door of their Delta home, and the smell was so strong she started to panic about what to do with her family.

91裸聊视频淚 was sitting here wondering, should I be getting in the car and getting out of here? Should I be driving until I don91裸聊视频檛 smell it anymore? Is something about to explode? It was stressful.91裸聊视频�

In a written statement, Harvie said FortisBC didn91裸聊视频檛 make a public statement on the gas release for more than four hours after initial reports about the smell were received by municipal officials.

Harvie said there was a lack of communication from FortisBC, calling it 91裸聊视频渁n egregious oversight.91裸聊视频�

The heavy odour resulted in a flood of calls to police and firefighters that seriously hampered Delta91裸聊视频檚 emergency response resources, he said.

91裸聊视频淭he stress and panic that this incident caused to both the public and our first responders was completely unnecessary,91裸聊视频� Harvie said.

He said he had asked Delta91裸聊视频檚 city manager to conduct a full review into why residents and businesses were 91裸聊视频渓eft in the dark91裸聊视频� about the release.

91裸聊视频淔ortisBC must be accountable for their delay in response causing confusion and alarm in our community.91裸聊视频�

In another written response, the City of Delta said its fire department received 19 calls transferred from 911 about the smell, and firehalls received about 100 inquiries. That doubled call volumes compared to the daily average.

In many cases, fire crews had to physically attend to make sure there were no on-site gas leaks, it said.

The City also said Delta Police received several 911 calls about the smell and about 50 non-emergency calls on Tuesday, delaying their ability to take other calls.

91裸聊视频淭he failure of FortisBC to communicate this gas odour leak had a serious impact on our emergency services whose resources should be dedicated to real emergencies,91裸聊视频� Harvie said.

At 4:56 p.m. on Tuesday, FortisBC had said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that it had responded to reports about the smell and 91裸聊视频渁n equipment leak causing the odour is under control.91裸聊视频�

Around 9 p.m. another social media post flagged a service alert about the smell, saying 91裸聊视频済as is under control.91裸聊视频�

In its website statement issued Wednesday, FortisBC said the odour was the result of work on new equipment at a Ladner facility, where 91裸聊视频渁 controlled release of gas91裸聊视频� was conducted Tuesday.

It said a minor leak was detected and brought under control by 2 p.m. 91裸聊视频渁nd repairs are underway.91裸聊视频� But the leak contained a large amount of mercaptan.

91裸聊视频淭he release of gas with a high concentration of mercaptan was not anticipated and, due to the strong smell, it has been detected by residents in several communities, including Ladner, Delta, Richmond and Vancouver,91裸聊视频� the statement said.

It said that despite the strong smell, mercaptan was not hazardous to inhale 91裸聊视频渨ith the quantity released in the atmosphere.91裸聊视频�

91裸聊视频淲e apologize for the inconvenience this may cause residents and commuters in the area. We realize the odour is very strong but it is expected to dissipate.91裸聊视频�

The odour was so heavy on Tuesday that BC Ferries told foot passengers at its nearby terminal to stay inside during their commute, while vehicle passengers were asked to roll up their windows.

Stevens said it was crucial to find out what went wrong.

91裸聊视频淓ven if FortisBC had properly warned our community that something was happening, I still think that it was a completely inappropriate level of something in our air,91裸聊视频� she said. 91裸聊视频淚 mean, it felt apocalyptic. It was very off-putting.91裸聊视频�

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