‘My car wouldn’t start’: Fuel tanks pulled from service after water contamination complaints

An Esso gas station located at Highway 92 and Crossland Road in Elmvale, Ont., has now had both of its storage tanks taken out of service following contaminated fuel complaints.

An Esso gas station at Highway 92 and Crossland Road near Wasaga Beach, Ont., has taken both of its fuel storage tanks out of service following multiple complaints from local drivers.

The Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) visited the gas station Monday afternoon and ordered the second gas tank to be shut down for further inspection.

This comes after many claims from drivers who said they filled up at the Esso pump and soon after experienced vehicle woes.

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TSSA confirmed to CTV News it received three complaints of contaminated fuel from the same location.

Officials said both tanks will remain out of service until the station fixes issues with its leak detection and monitoring system and meets all required standards.

Water leaking into fuel tank

When inspectors visited, they discovered water had leaked into the fuel tanks. Though, it remains unclear how exactly that happened.

Tiny Township resident Lindsay Fitzgerald said she and her husband filled up their vehicle at the station. The next day, their car wouldn’t start. After seeing a post on social media, Fitzgerald realized their gas may have contained water.

Another driver, Jeremy Nadeau, said he filled up his work truck at the same location and drove about 10 kilometres before the vehicle broke down and had to get towed.

Local mechanics told CTV News that they’ve also noticed a spike in vehicles coming in with water in their fuel tanks.

Jeff Whiteside, owner of Jeff Auto Repair, said customers came in over the past week with the same issue.

For now, both storage tanks at the Esso gas station remain shut down. The TSSA said it will return to inspect the site once those problems have been addressed.

CTV News did reach out to the owner of the gas station as well as its corporate office, but did not hear back.