The emergency response and investigation in downtown Wheatley have cost the Municipality of Chatham-Kent at least $5.5 million.
A report going to the council meeting on Monday night outlines the expenses incurred until the end of 2021.
The biggest expense items are contracts, wages, and security. Contracts and consulting fees have cost the municipality $2 million, wages have cost $1.8 million, and the security bill is almost $671,000.
The province has agreed to grant up to $2 million in expenses and the municipality said it continues to have discussions to get the province to cover the remaining expenses not covered by that grant.
The municipality and the province have been working together to identify and address the source of multiple hydrogen sulphide gas leaks since June of 2021 and to support the residents of downtown Wheatley forced from their properties by the leaks and the explosion that happened seven months ago.
Residents in the two blocks around the downtown blast site near 15 Erie Street North remain displaced to date.
Meanwhile, the next phase of the investigation begins this week.
Chatham-Kent Fire Chief Chris Case said downtown Wheatley residents should not be alarmed by loud activity over the next few days to a week.
"There will be large equipment arriving on scene, they'll see operations taking place, the sounding of horns, possibly gas being flared off. These are things that are quite normal and natural in these operations I'm advised," said Case.
Case said his firefighters will also be going door to door again to make sure residents are informed and feel at ease.
"For those people who live closest to the evacuation zone, we'll be trying to do a door to door again to answer any question, provide reassurance, and make sure that everybody knows what's going on. We'd rather that than any surprises for the community," Chief Case said
The municipality also said a fourth abandoned gas well was not found after some trenching and asphalt removal was done around the exterior of 17 Talbot Road East.
Some owners got a chance to visit their properties over the weekend, but visits have been suspended again while this new stage of the investigation continues.
