$1M Lawsuit Filed After Chemical Reeks Rotten Egg Smell Across South Jersey Towns

As the rotten egg smell caused by a chemical release continues to waft in parts of South Jersey, a lawsuit has been filed against the trucking company and maker of the chemical causing the stench and a town hall is planned to address residents' concerns.

A woman filed the suit against TransChem USA and the Lubrizol Corporation Monday in U.S. District Court in Texas. Gina Slavin-Borgesi's suit on behalf of herself and a minor. The suit seeks $1 million in damages.

The chemical leak that caused a rotten smell to stink up parts of South Jersey and downwind from a truck stop off Interstate 295 was eventually contained last Thursday. But the smell has lingered for days.

On Tuesday morning, the smell was still present intermittently in South Jersey, particularly around the truck stop off Interstate 295 where the leak occurred last week.

Slavin-Borgesi chose not to comment further about the suit when reached for comment by NBC10.

A Lubrizol spokesman said the company does not comment on pending litigation. A message was also left for TransChem USA, the trucking company, seeking comment about the lawsuit.

In recent days, the Gloucester County Office of Emergency Management has called it a "complex situation."

Emergency officials said they received "hundreds" of calls Wednesday from residents in Gloucester and Camden counties reporting a strong chemical odor outside. People even reported that the bad smell had wafted across the Delaware River into South Philadelphia.

The incident occurred at the TA Travel Center in Paulsboro off I-295. Officials said air quality testing showed, that while it may stink, the smell was not unsafe.

"The chemical, Lubrizol-1389 (Zinc alkyldithiophosphate), expels a nuisance odor that may linger for some time," officials in nearby Camden County said in a news release Thursday. "However, Haz-Mat Technicians have monitored and tested the air quality of the immediate incident scene as well as all surrounding areas that have experienced the odor. The results of the testing have confirmed that there is no risk to the public."

The stench lingered for days, even after Camden County officials said shortly after 10 a.m. Thursday that the chemical leak from a tractor-trailer was finally contained. HAZMAT crews had surrounded the truck since Wednesday afternoon and at least two controlled releases of a chemical identified as a fuel additive occurred, officials said.

"After initial maneuvers the Tanker was immediately placed back into the monitor and vapor recovery phase of this project prior to any next planned maneuvers," Gloucester County OEM said Sunday afternoon. "The residual product along side of the tanker was part of the initial vapor releases."

In a statement posted to the Gloucester County Emergency Management's Facebook page, TransChem and CTEH, an environmental consulting firm, claimed the smell has been caused by Hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans, which are colorless gases "often used in various industrial processes."

"Simply because a person can smell these compounds in the air does not mean their exposure in harmful," the FAQ's posted on Facebook said.

Emergency officials said the smell was coming from a trailer "venting off large amounts of gas."

Lubrizol-1389 can cause eye and skin irritation, officials said.

The chemical is manufactured by Lubrizol Corp., which is a Berkshire Hathaway company headquartered in Ohio. The company has a chemical plant in Pedrickstown, New Jersey.

"Lubrizol is aware of the incident in Paulsboro, New Jersey, involving Transchem USA, an independent trucking company, which was transporting product manufactured by Lubrizol. The trucking company is investigating the incident and leading the response with local authorities," a company spokesman said in an email last week. "Lubrizol specialists are on site offering expertise on the chemistry of our product to support our transportation supplier and to coordinate with first responders and local health officials. We continue to closely monitoring the situation."

Lubrizol-1389 is used as a lubricant in machine parts, according to the American Chemical Society.

"Zinc dialkyl dithiophosphates (ZDDPs) are very effective antiwear agents that are used as machine lubricants (e.g., greases, hydraulic oils, and motor oils), including applications in the automotive industry," the ACS said on its website.

The tanker truck was carrying 7,000 pounds of the chemical.

In response to the ongoing smell and concerns from the community, a town hall meeting was planned in East Greenwich township Tuesday night at 6. People could join the event in person or on Zoom.

Meeting organizers asked that people submit questions in advance of Tuesday's meeting.

A hotline has also been set up from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. You can call the GC OEM call center at 856-384-6800.