First Call Raleigh was contacted to perform a site assessment for a home heating oil release in the crawl space of a residence. Upon arrival, the First Call manager was informed that the oil had released from a faulty filter and impacted a soil crawl space. The odor of the oil had permeated the house forcing the resident to locate temporary housing. The homeowner was having difficulty securing any type of cleanup action through his insurance company.
The First Call management team went to work and partnered with the local emergency management, State regulatory officials and the insurance company to put a plan together.
First Calls team began with the removal of accumulated free liquids in the crawl space with a liquid vacuum truck. Containment was also put in place to ensure that no materials would migrate. A State certified Geologist was consulted to review the plan of action and once approved, First Call went to work.
Due to the tight space and limited means of entry and egress, a confined space crew was assigned to the project. Utilizing an air knife, the team removed the mixture of dirt and hard packed clay from the impact areas. All contaminated material was collected using a wet/dry vacuum truck and then containerized for proper disposal. Once the area was determined to be clean, post excavation samples were extracted. A bio remediation product was then applied in the space before the installation of a vapor barrier.
After dealing with weeks of trying to have a proper cleanup performed, First Call was able to partner with all regulatory parties and present a practical solution that allowed the homeowner to return.