St. C. Sam’s Club fuel mixup leaves some patrons frustrated

T-L Photo/GAGE VOTA Pumps at the Sam’s Club gas station in the Ohio Valley Plaza are blocked with cones after the regular 87 octane gasoline supply at the store apparently was tainted on Saturday.
ST. CLAIRSVILLE — A fuel mixup at the Sam’s Club gas station at the Ohio Valley Plaza caused problems for some patrons who purchased regular 87 octane gasoline on Saturday.
Several local residents took to social media to vent their frustrations and concerns about their vehicles after they fueled up there. Many wrote that their vehicle either would not start or would run but was misfiring as a result of adding that fuel to their tanks.
“My brother-in-law bought gas at Sams today. Went to go home this eve from our home in St. C and his truck will not start. We loaned him one of our cars to go home. His new truck is in our driveway and will have to be towed to be repaired. I pray that Sams will take care of this problem. He lives in Pgh. Pa. and this is such an inconvenience to him and this truck does not even have 1,000 miles on it. I would and will not ever go to Sams,” Barb Eiben posted on social media.
Eve Shaw replied that she had the same issue and added that her car stopped running while on Ohio 7 after filling up at Sam’s Club.
Gina Shane commented that she filled up her car and did not have any issues.
Officials at the Sam’s Club St. Clairsville location declined to comment on the matter Monday and referred The Times Leader to Sam’s Club’s national media relations department, which could not be reached.
In response to patrons’ social media posts, however, St. Clairsville Sam’s Club Manager Cat Litchko made a statement informing people that she will need all who purchased regular 87 octane gasoline at her location to call the store and provide their name, phone number, membership number, date and time of purchase, pump number, make, model, and year of their vehicle.
“We will send a claim in and get everything resolved,” she wrote Saturday. “Premium & diesel are good. Premium is actually at reg price until we get the issue figured out and resolved on our end. Techs are on their way out now.”
After Litchko’s call to action, Jake Lyle asked on his social media account if anyone experiencing issues with their vehicles after fueling up at Sam’s Club had heard from the store.
Sam Phillips replied that a representative of the store informed him that diesel fuel was accidentally mixed into the regular unleaded 87 gas supply.
“Nothing yet but waiting for a call back. I can’t afford to come out of pocket for all the repairs at the moment and a rental car since I live in the middle of nowhere, high risk pregnancy, 8 months along, 2 kids still in car seats. I need something further than we will reimburse you in about 2 weeks for hopefully whatever this is going to cost you,” Sierra Queen replied to Lyle.
Several residents replied to the various posts on the matter, saying they believe it was water mixed into the gas, but Queen later made a post stating that she spoke with a representative from Sam’s Club and it was diesel fuel coming out of the regular 87 gas nozzle.
“Please make sure that when you get the issue addressed you aren’t just draining the fuel tank or adding an additive, the damage diesel can do to gas engines, from what I have been told by mechanics, is more extensive than a simple fix can address,” she said.
Those who purchased gas from the St. Clairsville Sam’s Club location on Saturday and experienced vehicle issues can call 740-695-0198 to file a claim.