Tuesday, November 7, 2017
FUEL is temporarily unavailable at the Tirohanga Fuel Stop after an infrastructure problem was discovered. Photo Sven Carlsson OB4026-01
Sven Carlsson
ALLIED Petroleum has announced a temporary closure at the Tirohanga Fuel Stop on State Highway 35.
Tirohanga Beach Store co-owner Ema Williams said a problem had been discovered with the fuel tanks at the store.
“We made several service calls to Allied about slow fuel and other problems,” she said.
“We got frustrated and so did they,” she said.
Allied Petroleum sent out a service technician who discovered there was a serious problem.
It was not yet known if the current tanks could be repaired or if they needed replacing.
“It may be a maintenance issue or replacement,” Mrs Williams said.
“We hope the nature of the problem will be determined this week, because we want to get the repair work started so it can be fixed before Christmas.”
The fuel pumps have been removed to avoid confusion for motorists, who otherwise might stop and get out of their car in spite of the signage saying there’s no fuel available.
“They said removing the pumps saves a lot of frustration,” Mrs Williams said.
Allied Petroleum marketing manager Brett Haldane said the company was exploring the possibility of relocating a community response unit to Tirohanga, which would then allow customers to purchase only diesel in the interim.
The closure was required to allow the facility owners the opportunity to investigate and upgrade the infrastructure on the site.
“We apologise for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience,” Mr Haldane said.