Tanker Truck with Non-Odorized Propane Wrecks in Marshall County, WV

Forty Ton Propane Tanker

Forty Ton Propane Tanker Hits Marshall County Building

From Article by Daniel Dorsch & Casey Junkins, The Wheeling Intelligencer, February 5, 2013 

MOUNDSVILLE, WV - Snow, ice and slush contributed to a series of traffic accidents across the Upper Ohio Valley on Monday, including the rollover of a 40-ton propane tanker truck on W.Va. 88.

The truck, hauling non-odorized propane, crashed at Pine Hill Road between U.S. 250 and W.Va. 86 in the Limestone/Sherrard area of Marshall County on Monday afternoon, striking a nearby structure. The driver was injured and taken to Ohio Valley Medical Center in Wheeling, according to emergency management Director Tom Hart.

Sherrard Volunteer Fire Department, Limestone VFD/EMS, Marshall County Sheriff’s Department, West Virginia State Police, the West Virginia Division of Highways and Marshall County Office of Emergency Management responded. The accident closed the road for about four hours.

“The deputies who responded think the truck’s tires may have dropped off the road, or it may have taken the turn too wide. We’re not really sure at this time,” said Marshall County Chief Deputy Bill Helms. He said the truck’s back end apparently struck a building along the road.

“We don’t believe there’s any serious damage to the building at this time,” Helms added, noting he did not believe the person inside the building was injured in the accident.

Helms said the propane being transported was not odorized, which he said means that it was not treated with chemicals to make it identifiable by smell. The truck did not appear to be leaking, but another propane truck arrived on the scene to transfer the propane to its tank.

NOTE: When a tracer is added to odorless gases, such as a mercaptan, a distinctive odor can be smelled by workers or the public as a safety measure.