Remember that strong odor of natural gas in Brevard County we told you about this week? We now know what it is.
"We're sorry for the mess up, but it could happen to anybody," Nikki Wiebelt said.
She wants to “clear the air” about an unpleasant odor smelled by so many people in the West Melbourne, Palm Bay area for the past several days.
It was caused by an old 120-gallon propane tank the Wiebelts were trying to sell.
Late last week, a man bought the tank to turn it into a BBQ smoker.
Shortly after, he changed his mind and Nikki's husband agreed to take it back and store it at her brother's Arizona Street home workshop.
But when he opened it, water began rushing out, along with leftover propane treated with Ethanethiol, an odorant making it possible to smell leaking gas.
"That water poured out and that's what caused all of this smell," said Wiebelt. "We did not know that the water was not contaminated with the dye, and that's what's causing the odor."
The concentrated amount seeped into their driveway concrete, and into the ground.
The spill’s smell is so potent it's been carried all around the southern part of Brevard County since last Friday.
Local emergency dispatch lines were flooded with concerned callers. Area gas companies checked their systems.
On Wednesday, Brevard Fire Rescue Hazmat showed up at the house to get some resolution. Joining them, a county code enforcement officer. Code prohibits these types of smells coming from private property.
And now the Wiebelts have to dig up their contaminated concrete, all while the saying “no good deed goes unpunished” resonates in their heads.
"They told us it's like being sprayed by a skunk, you just have to wait for it to dissipate," she said with a smile.
The Wiebelts have 10 days to get the work done or possibly face fines.
Officials expect the non-toxic gas smell to linger for weeks, maybe months.