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Castle Pines Abandoned Drum

 
Site Contact:
Craig Myers
OSC

(myers.craig@epa.gov)

Site Location:
560 E Castle Pines PKWY
Castle Pines, CO 80108
 response.epa.gov/castlepinesabandoneddrum
NRC#: 1386858

On the morning of December 16, 2023, South Metro Fire Department contacted EPA’s phone duty officer and reported a 55-gallon abandoned drum in a parking lot located at 560 E Castle Pines Pkwy. The drum appeared to be half full with an unknown substance.

State, Local and Federal Agency Actions and Roles: 

EPA, along with their contractors, mobilized to the Site on December 16th to secure and characterize the drum and arrange for its proper disposal. Working with Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and South Metro Fire, EPA was able to secure the drum for proper disposal.


Initial exclusion zone set up by local agency around the unknown abandoned drum. Staining on asphalt is suspected petroleum contamination. START performing field tests to determine hazard categories of the contents from the abandoned drum. Personnel is wearing level B personal protective equipment (PPE). Note the expanded exclusion zone. START monitoring around closures on the top of the abandoned drum to assess for physical and chemical hazards prior to opening. Close up view of the condition of the second bung closure located on the top of the abandoned drum. Bung closures are threaded plugs on drums to create liquid-tight seals that stop dirt, dust, and contaminants from entering, as wells keeping material from leaking out of the drum during movement/handling. The bung and threads on the drum are damaged, making the drum not in a shippable condition. View of contents inside the abandoned drum from bung closure. START performing field tests to determine hazard categories of the contents from the abandoned drum. Thermal field test performed on the sample from the abandoned drum with ignitable vapors. The vehicle is several feet away from the test, and is being used to shield the field testing from wind as well as providing a dark backdrop to enable better flame color differentiation. The ERRS contractor loading the original damaged drum found on site and the new drum used to transport the contents of the damaged drum. Up-close view of the emptied drum found on site (right) and the new drum used to transport waste (left) secured on the truck to be removed off site for disposal. Overview of the south side of site after site activities were completed.