Local News

Springfield family stuck with cleanup after 100 gallons of oil accidentally pumped into their basement

"There was a terrible mishap at their home last week…..an oil delivery truck delivered 100 gallons of oil to their home, EXCEPT they DONT use oil to heat!!!"

By Madeleine Aitken

November 14, 2022

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One hundred gallons of oil reportedly flooded into the basement of a Springfield home after a fuel company mistook the house they were meant to be delivering the oil to.

A GoFundMe fundraiser was posted Saturday for the Lanzillo family.

“There was a terrible mishap at their home last week…..an oil delivery truck delivered 100 gallons of oil to their home, EXCEPT they DONT use oil to heat!!! The driver went to the wrong house and filled THEIR BASEMENT with the oil through a very old pipe, ruining absolutely everything that was down there!” the GoFundMe’s organizer, a friend of the family named Tina Manzi, wrote on the page.

The basement contains three bedrooms, and their children lost everything they own and will need to replace all of their personal belongings, said Manzi. 

The Lanzillo family lost their home to a tornado in 2011; this incident brings back the trauma and suffering of that time, Tina Lanzillo told Western Mass News.

These kinds of incidents are actually somewhat commonplace, said a spokesperson from the Massachusetts Board of Building Regulations and Standards. The state has a mechanical code that says oil pipes that are no longer in use should be removed from the building or must be clearly marked. Residents with oil pipes who do not use oil for heat should make sure to heed this guideline.

The fundraiser had garnered $1,485 of its $5,000 goal from 27 donors as of late Monday morning.