Northern Illinois residents report natural gas odor; authorities trace its origins to Cedar County, Iowa

DIXON – An odor of natural gas reported by Illinois residents from Whiteside, Ogle, DeKalb and McHenry counties has been attributed to equipment maintenance in Cedar County, Iowa.

The Clinton County, Iowa, Sheriff’s Office and DeWitt Fire Department in DeWitt, Iowa, on Tuesday morning responded to several reports of a natural gas-like smell in and around U.S. 61 and DeWitt. Law enforcement and fire personnel detected a natural gas-like odor; however, they were not able to identify the source of the odor at the time of the calls, according to a news release from Clinton County Sheriff Bill Greenwalt.

The natural gas-like odor continued to drift east toward the cities of Clinton; Camanche, Iowa; and Fulton. The Clinton Fire Department and Fulton Fire Department received several complaints regarding the odor. The Ogle County Sheriff’s office about 2:15 p.m. Tuesday posted an alert that it was receiving numerous calls from around the county of the smell of natural gas.

Upon further investigation, Clinton County authorities said, it is believed the odor likely originated during the maintenance of equipment in Cedar County. The Clinton County Sheriff’s Office, DeWitt Fire Department, Clinton Fire Department, Clinton Police Department, Clinton County Emergency Management and Clinton County Communications are working together to follow up on the complaints and odor, according to the release.

DeKalb County residents also reported smelling natural gas, DeKalb County Sheriff Andy Sullivan said Tuesday evening. He said the sheriff’s office had dispatched emergency crews to investigate.

The Clinton County Sheriff’s Office also has been in contact with Alliant Energy, which reported receiving several complaints regarding the odor. As of Tuesday afternoon, the odor appeared to have dissipated from the Clinton County area, and local public safety officials said they believed there was no threat to the public.

Iowa officials said any resident who detects an odor of natural gas or liquid propane in or around their property or residence should not hesitate to call 911.

Ogle County officials said residents who want to report the odor in their area can call 800-747-1470. Officials there said Nicor had crews out monitoring the situation.

However, police in McHenry have told residents they don’t need to call 911 at this point if it’s merely because they smell the odor outside.

“There is no known gas leak in our area and no known danger to residents. Due to wind speed/direction/temperature, the odor is believed to be traveling to us from Iowa. There is no need to call 911 to report the odor alone. Call 911 if you can smell the odor inside your home and/or exhibit symptoms,” McHenry police said in an email alert.

McHenry police put out two alerts Tuesday, at 5:17 p.m. and 6:02 p.m., asking residents to quit calling.