Fire risk as wrong fuel delivered
At least 2,000 homes in the west at risk of boiler fires after refinery error mixes it with petrol.
AN ERROR at an oil refinery has placed at least 2,000 homes in the west of France at risk of boilers fires.
A mistake in the fuel mixture at the Total refinery in Donges in the Loire-Atlantique has resulted in extra-flammable heating oil being delivered to homes between January 15-19.
Some 2.5 million litres of domestic heating fuel are thought to have been contaminated with petrol and delivered to six wholesalers including SFDM – which in turn carries out home fuel deliveries.
The resulting mixture is stronger than normal heating oil with highly flammable vapour.
The problem has hit homes in the Brittany and Pays de la Loire regions.
A spokesman for Total recommended that affected households should not use their boilers.
SFDM have compiled a list of homes where fuel was delivered since the incident last Thursday and has been carrying out visits to empty and clean heating systems.
Total has announced that it will foot the full cost of the bill.
One homeowner said: “Are they going to compensate us for a week without heating and hot water?”
In March, 2008 the same oil refinery at Donges was responsible for the leakage of 400 tonnes of oil into the Loire river.
The accident produced oil slicks around the l'île de Ré and the l'île d'Oléron as well as the river.
