Abandoned 1929 fuel tanks discovered leaking in Pennsylvania cleanup

Crews made a nearly 100-year-old discovery underground in the Alle-Kiski Valley while cleaning up a former hazardous site.

Outside the Stop' n Shop convenience store at Spring Hill and Freeport in Harrison Township, workers have been actively uncovering what could be considered historical artifacts below the surface of the parking lot where there once was a gas station decades ago.

Spokespeople for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection told KDKA they first started receiving complaints about the smell of gasoline from the sewer system in the area in 2018, and they started to drill in 2019. Then came the pandemic and they took a pause until March 3, with contractors from EnviroTrac discovering 10 underground storage tanks dating back to 1929.

The agency confirmed to KDKA that some were leaking because they were structurally compromised, with tests showing groundwater was contaminated with gasoline.

Crews removed any contaminated soil, and as of Wednesday, they're almost done filling the hole, with the DEP saying remediation work is underway "to address an imminent and substantial threat to public health and welfare."

In the process, the agency said it's testing all contaminated materials "to ensure proper handling, transportation, and disposal."

The DEP said no one knew the tanks were there because they were never registered with the state due to how old they are. It wasn't until 1989 when the Storage Tank and Spill Prevention Act became law, requiring registration of most underground tanks.

The agency expects the project to continue for at least another month.