Fuel contaminated with water at Pinellas Park gas station, state halts diesel sales
PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - They thought they were pumping diesel fuel into their truck. Instead, it was actually water. And they say it cost them thousands of dollars in damages.
They reported it to the Florida Department of Agriculture, which in response issued a stop sale order for diesel fuel at the Shell gas station located at the corner of 66th St. N. and 126th Ave. N. in Pinellas Park on Monday.
Philip and Melisia Diamond, who own All About Moving Tampa Bay in Largo, say a similar situation happened to them two years ago at the same gas station, which is just down the street from their business.
Fox 13 spoke with the station owner, Shahid Khoja, on Thursday. Khoja said as soon as the Diamonds complained about the situation on Sunday, he told employees to bag all the diesel pumps and halt any further diesel sales. He says he also contacted the Department of Agriculture on Sunday.
He says department officials visited the store Monday and that testing confirmed water in the diesel tank. How it got there remains a mystery, but Khoja says he’s committed to finding out. He’s awaiting further tests to determine if there’s a leak in the tanks or the fuel lines. He told FOX 13 he’s offered a remedy to the Diamonds but hasn’t heard back.
On Wednesday, Philip Diamond told FOX 13 that he was filling up one of his work trucks on Sunday when a brown-colored liquid came out of the diesel pump.
"As I was pumping, the truck just cut off and I immediately thought ‘oh my gosh please tell me is not water again,’" Philip Diamond said.
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Diamond said this specific truck has what's called a separator. It's designed to immediately shut off if it detects water in the fuel. As soon as the water detection sensor went off, they alerted gas station staff.
"She came back out and said 'I'm sorry it's above what I can handle,' but the owner said ‘take it up with your insurance company,’" Melisia Diamond said.
Khoja, who lives out of state, told FOX 13 that no other customers have reported water in the diesel or damage to vehicles, but no further sales will occur until the source is discovered and repaired. He told FOX 13 that if the Diamonds provide an invoice from a certified, licensed mechanic detailing the cost of repairs due to damage from water in the diesel he can submit it to his insurance company for reimbursement. Khoja says he has tried to be in communication with the Diamonds but so far has been unsucessful.
Testing on Monday by the Department of Agriculture showed about 7 inches of water in the underground tank. The DOA will have to return to re-inspect before the station can start selling diesel again.
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