This week, locals in Iowa City and Quad Cities may have smelt a pungent odor from Durant. This was recently addressed by the Cedar County Emergency Management Agency in a Facebook status after a number of locals had reported a horrible smell. Unfortunately, the status acknowledged that the smell could get even worse in the short term.

Here, the statement read: ‘Regarding the odor in Durant: Several agencies are present in Durant at this time working to help mitigate the odor situation. Some mitigation activities will begin occurring shortly. As a result, the odor may temporarily intensify. Your patience is appreciated as we work to resolve the issue.’

According to some comments, the smell even went as far as Illinois which shows just how pungent it was. It is believed the smell came from someone rinsing a natural gas tank and leaving the valves on. This resulted in a gas smell which naturally got people curious regarding its origins. Since the incident, the smell has died down although some parts of Iowa can still smell the industrial stench.

While this is an inconvient situation, it should also be noted that this sort of incident it also very rare. Not only this but despite the vile smell it has also been confirmed as harmless to the public’s health.