What's that smell?

Apologies to loyal FacilityBlog followers. Unfortunately, the editorial team was forced to evacuate its offices earlier today because of what smelled like a natural gas leak in and/or around the building. When the police and fire crews came through the office telling everyone to get out and get away from the building, compliance seemed like a good idea.

Has this ever happened in your buildings? How long was it before emergency personnel responded? And how long did it take for the utility company to respond? How did you evacuate personnel safely, and how long was it before everyone was safely allowed back into the building?

On the heels of yesterday’s explosion in the northern portion of the state, New Jersey residents are not over reacting to natural gas leaks these days, despite 20˚ F temperatures. As one co-worker said, “I’d rather be standing in 20˚F than 5,000˚F!”

Fortunately, there were no injuries and everyone has returned to business as normal. Turns out, it wasn’t a gas leak at all, but instead, it was stagnant sprinkler water. Ironic, don’t you think?