Residents concerned about gas odour from refinery east of Edmonton

A gas leak in Edmonton caused quite a stink on social media Monday night.

Edmonton Fire Rescue tweeted that there was a gas leak at the Imperial Oil tank farm just east of Edmonton, causing a rotten egg smell.

“The leak does not pose any risk to the public,” the tweet read. “However, the rotten egg smell may be noticeable in Edmonton up to a week or more.”

Around 9 p.m., residents in east Edmonton took to social media, posting about the stench, with some describing it as more of a natural gas smell.

Residents reported the smell in neighborhoods like Strathearn, Forest Heights and Ottewell — all west of the refineries along Baseline Road.

On the Strathcona Industrial Update Line, a message was posted by Imperial Oil around 6 p.m. saying “the refinery has identified that a product odour may be detectable near the refinery.”

“It went on to say, “Steps are currently underway to confirm and remediate the source.”

READ MORE: Gas leak and explosion forces residents out of central Edmonton apartment building

On Tuesday afternoon, Imperial Oil posted a statement to its Facebook page acknowledging the gas leak.

“We are aware of a gasoline odour emitting through a valve on the roof of a tank at Imperial’s South Tank Farm south of the refinery on 34 Street, which has been detectable by some near neighbours,” it reads.

“We are actively working on a repair. As a precautionary measure, our team is performing site monitoring and safety checks twice per shift, four times a day.”

The statement went on to say “Monitoring conducted indicates there are no safety or health concerns for the community.”

Global News has reached out to the Alberta Energy Regulator, but has not yet heard back.