Severe flash flooding seen in recent weeks and The City of Blue Ridge's failure to address an infrastructure problem five years ago are being blamed for a diesel spill downtown.
Approximately 25 gallons were spilled, which was discovered March 26.
The leak was first reported to Fannin County Fire Chief Larry Thomas who then reported it to both the Environmental Protection Division (EPD) and the owner of the property, Blue Ridge City Council member Rhonda Haight.
According to Thomas, Will Jacobs with EPD and Haight met with him at the location, 342 East Main Street, to look for evidence of an overflow leak.
Haight said the leak developed when flooding entered two large, above-ground tanks that had been empty for several years; however, the flood water washed residual diesel out of the tanks, which resulted in the leak.
Haight said, “It was not enough to be a major concern, and we went down there immediately when he called us and did what we were supposed to do. But, here’s the thing … It never should have flooded in the first place. There’s a cause and effect.”
EPD’s investigation file should be closed soon, and she is moving the tanks.
Haight also spoke to the city’s lack of action in 2015 to address the issue that caused the flooding, stating, “In 2015, our engineer actually came in and did a study and everything (runoff water) kind of goes to that area, and it’s never been fixed."
She explained that water flows from a large pipe into a smaller pipe, causing the area around the tanks, at the rear of the Fannin County Co-Op, at the previously city-owned parking lot, and at the Pack property to flood.
Speaking to the city’s response at the time of the engineer’s report, she said, "We were working on Streetscape and, ya know, Mayor (Donna) Whitener was like, ‘We need money for the streetscape,’ so the city never moved forward with getting that particular piece, which is the biggest piece of the pie right there, fixed.”
Haight took her recent concerns to Planning, Zoning and Project Manager Jeff Stewart, and said the city is working to get the storm drains and pipes in the area enlarged to prevent future flooding as they work on infrastructure issues.
“It’s a cause and effect, and this has got to stop,” she said. “This is an important issue, and it’s affecting a lot of property owners.”