ODNR issues statement on ‘strange smell’ in local city
ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (WJW) — The city of Rocky River has been taking many calls all week about a “strange smell.”
Thursday afternoon, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources issued a statement to Fox 8 News regarding the issue.
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ODNR said it’s working on the situation and the odor will be gone in, “a couple of days.”
Rocky River Fire Chief Aaron Lenart said he wants to reassure residents there’s not a safety or health issue, but the smell is “bad…swampy.”
Here is the statement from ODNR Spokesperson Andy Chow:
The odor people are reporting in the area is due to routine work to plug an orphan well. In January, a construction crew was doing work on a proposed housing development at 18611 Hilliard Blvd in Rocky River. That crew reported the discovery of an orphan well. At that time the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Oil and Gas Resources Management issued an emergency contract and put a temporary cap on the well. Now, crews are working to put a permanent plug in the well. To do so, excess oil and gas must be extracted in order to clean out the well and set permanent cement plugs. This should be completed in the next couple of days and the odor should subside. The well is under control.
Lenart said construction crews are building new condos along Hilliard Avenue south of I-90 and an oil well, from around 1910, was found.
The wells were dug by homeowners or farmers to heat their homes over a hundred years ago and the well needed to be capped for environmental reasons before construction can continue.
A subcontractor was digging to cap the well which released a strong odor of natural gas and an oily smell, according to Lenart.
A neighbor told Fox 8 News that she’s been noticing a “strange smell”, but was relieved officials said it poses no danger.
Councilperson Jeanne Gallagher sent a letter to residents in the area writing, “This is an unpleasant smell but is not dangerous.”
Gallagher also said ODNR is fixing the issue, but it could take up to 10 days to be resolved.
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Some neighbors were also concerned about the smell of natural gas because it’s the same construction zone where there was a huge propane tank exploded in 2020 sending a fireball and inferno into the air.
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While not related, nor the same type of gas, both incidents took place on the same land.
*The photo below is from the 2020 propane tank explosion on the same land*
*2020 photo: Courtesy of Michael Jaracz*
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