No Reports of Major Issues from Tainted Gas
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - State officials say they have heard from a few dozen people with questions and concerns about the deliveries of gasoline containing diesel fuel to gas stations in southeastern Minnesota, but have yet to hear any reports of significant engine damage or vehicle stalls connected to that fuel.
A spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Commerce says that suggests most motorists who purchased the gasoline this past weekend will likely only experience minor knocking or roughness from the small percentage of diesel in the gasoline. Vehicle owners who did experience knocking, backfiring, or rough running, should keep their receipt (or transaction confirmation from their online credit card account) and contact the fuel retailer. The gas station will use the receipt to determine if the consumer bought before or after the station received a contaminated load.
The Commerce Department added that in cases where a consumer experiences engine roughness, the vehicle’s tank should be drained and fresh gasoline added at the expense of the station, which would then seek reimbursement from Magellan Midstream, which is the company that operates the terminal near Eyota where an operational error resulted in shipments of the tainted gasoline to about 50 gas stations, convenience stores and truck stops.
A statement from Magellan today indicated the majority of the affected gasoline has been removed and replaced, allowing most of the retailers to return to normal operations. The firm also issued an apology to its “customers, fuel distributors, retail gasoline marketers, fuel consumers and state regulators that have been affected by this unfortunate incident.”