Who's in charge of preventing watered down gas?

Leighann Klingensmith has a folder filled with receipts all from December 23rd, 2017. That’s when her family embarked on their Christmas trek from Northern Virginia to Oklahoma. Along the way they made a pit stop in Southwest Virginia at the Ironto Truck Stop. Instead of fueling their drive forward, they hit a bump in the road.

The side of Interstate 81 is where you could find the Klingensmiths and at least 13 others who broke down after getting gas at the truck stop. Some mechanics reported 95 percent water in the fuel pulled from the tanks.

When problems happen at the gas pump, investigators at a state agency are looking out for you. Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has an Office of Weights and Measures. They are responsible for inspecting all gas stations across the Commonwealth.

After the Ironto Truck Stop incident, WDBJ7 filed an open records request to see the last time the station was inspected: 2014.

The office shoots for intervals of every one and a half years. Last year the average interval was every two years. They are still working to bring it down, but in the case of Ironto there are a few factors that could have led to the longer interval.

WDBJ7 received a sneak peek into what an inspection looks like, how intense the process is and how few people across Virginia are qualified to do it.

Leighann Klingensmith has a folder filled with receipts all from December 23rd, 2017. That’s when her family embarked on their Christmas trek from Northern Virginia to Oklahoma. Along the way they made a pit stop in Southwest Virginia at the Ironto Truck Stop. Instead of fueling their drive forward, they hit a bump in the road.

The side of Interstate 81 is where you could find the Klingensmiths and at least 13 others who broke down after getting gas at the truck stop. Some mechanics reported 95 percent water in the fuel pulled from the tanks.

When problems happen at the gas pump, investigators at a state agency are looking out for you. Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has an Office of Weights and Measures. They are responsible for inspecting all gas stations across the Commonwealth.

After the Ironto Truck Stop incident, WDBJ7 filed an open records request to see the last time the station was inspected: 2014.

The office shoots for intervals of every one and a half years. Last year the average interval was every two years. They are still working to bring it down, but in the case of Ironto there are a few factors that could have led to the longer interval.

WDBJ7 received a sneak peek into what an inspection looks like, how intense the process is and how few people across Virginia are qualified to do it.

For more on the numbers, what an inspection consists of and what VDACS is hoping consumers will learn, tune in Monday at 6:00 on WDBJ7.