In light of the recent gas pipeline explosion in Northern California, residents across the Santa Maria Valley didn’t hesitate to call in complaints Tuesday about an unknown odor, but field investigations by the Santa Maria Fire Department found no concentrations of known hazards.
Santa Maria dispatchers received about two dozen phone calls about an odor described as sulfurous or a fertilizer. Fire crews responded to six complaints. A bank at Town Center West self-evacuated because of the odor.
Mark van de Kamp with the City of Santa Maria said the source of the odor remains unknown, but it may have been the result of fertilizer applications or decaying organic matter from an unknown source, exacerbated by the heat wave and winds.
In October 2008, complaints about an odor were received and staff investigated several potential causes, including rotting vegetation in drainage ditches. Last year about this time, the city received similar complaints.
— Noozhawk managing editor Michelle Nelson can be reached at mnelson@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk or @NoozhawkNews.
