A malfunctioning vapor recovery system at Apex Oil Terminal caused the odors residents reported near River Road on Wednesday, according to Jay Hardman, Executive Director of the Port of Greater Baton Rouge.

The City of Port Allen alerted residents last Thursday that Apex Oil had reported "a malfunction with one of their barges" that resulted in a noticeable odor in the surrounding area.

Hardman said the malfunction occurred in equipment designed to capture petroleum vapors during liquid bulk transfers. South winds carried the vapors toward Port Allen, where a nearby resident on Oaks Street detected the smell and notified Apex.

"They shut it down," Hardman said. Repairs were underway as of Thursday evening.

Apex Oil Terminal is a port tenant that handles liquid bulk transfers of petroleum products including crude oil, carbon black oil, and lubricating oils. The facility installed its vapor recovery system several years ago after previous odor complaints from neighbors.

Hardman said the system had been working well. Lloyd, a resident who lives near the facility and serves as an informal early warning system for odor issues, told Hardman it had been roughly two to two-and-a-half years since he had detected any odors from Apex.

"I think Apex has done a good job with their vapor recovery," Hardman said. "It's just unfortunate that their equipment malfunctioned when they were in the midst of transfer."

The City of Port Allen said Wednesday there was no immediate threat to public safety.

Residents who noticed the odor described it as smelling like sewage or heavy oil.

WBR Independent has reached out to Louisiana State Police and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to confirm whether any incident reports were filed. Those agencies had not responded as of press time.

This is a developing story. Updates will be posted as more information becomes available.