SAN ANTONIO – A “significant release” of mercaptan occurred on San Antonio’s south side on Wednesday morning, prompting several 911 calls from people believing it was a natural gas leak.
The San Antonio Fire Department said mercaptan is a chemical used to give natural gas its distinctive odor, since natural gas is odorless.
“While it smells like gas, it is not harmful on its own,” SAFD said in a news release.
The release occurred earlier Wednesday morning.
However, several KSAT viewers reported they still smell the odor throughout the city, including near Lackland Air Force Base.
SAFD said 911 operators received multiple calls about the smell. There is no danger to the public, SAFD said.
KSAT reached out to Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, which confirmed there was a strong odor of gas near the base. JBSA-Lackland will return to normal operations.
CPS Energy is asking anyone who continues to smell gas to call the utility at 210-353-HELP (4357). If customers think they smell gas in their homes, they should leave their house immediately and call CPS Energy or 911.
“We have teams ready to answer each call, but because of the high volume of reports due to the neighboring utility’s odorant leak, it might take some time for a CPS Energy gas technician to respond,” CPS Energy said.
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