Video: Fuel Leak Stopped, Repair Efforts Begin

DERMA, Miss. (WCBI) — All throughout the day, an air quality monitor was at work.

And yellow tape cordoned off part of the property in front of the “Derma Fast Stop,” where a gasoline leak was first noticed Tuesday evening.

“Upon arrival, we realized we had a much larger spill than was anticipated, so most of our efforts continued late into the night, early morning,”said Randy Skinner, director of Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency.

The leak was stopped and contained. Now, cleanup and repair efforts will begin.

“The pumps will be down, obviously, until repair can be completed, that will be handled by the fuel company themselves, by a private contractor,” Skinner said.

There is no estimate on how long repairs will take, but until everything is fixed, the only convenience store in Derma won’t be selling gasoline, and the store’s owner says that’s already affecting the bottom line.

“It’s zero business now, no business without gas,” said Badr Alqatini, who owns the “Derma Fast Stop.”

Alqatini doesn’t know how long the gas pumps will be shut down, but he knows it could have been a lot worse.

“Thank God everybody is good,” Alqatini said. A spokesman for DEQ estimates as much as 1,000 gallons may have leaked from the underground tank or fuel line.