Did you smell it? What was that odor reported from South Jersey to South Philly?
HAMMONTON, N.J. - It’s the case of the mystery smell in many parts of South Jersey Tuesday evening.
"My son and I were sitting around watching the Phillies game last night and, you know, we got the windows open the weather’s nice. All of a sudden, this smell came in and we were like what is that weird smell," says Lida Redles of Sicklerville.
Redles did what anyone would do who smells something odd, she kept sniffing around.
"I’m like smelling the papers that I had printed off the printer and I was like, no it’s not that smell," says Redles.
With no luck, she went to social media where she quickly learned she wasn’t the only one. "People were saying, ‘Where is that smell coming out of? Burlington Cross Keys Road? I can smell it in Winslow,’" says Redles.
A smell she describes as chemical-like, but others were saying body odor, dead flowers and even cat urine.
"I have five cats so, I know what a dirty litter box smells like and that definitely was not it," says Redles.
FOX 29's Greg Payne caught up with Mark Spino at his job in Philly. He lives in Gloucester Township and he said the smell was different for him, "I thought maybe one of my neighbors just cut their grass. I went to the store, smelled it in the air and was like something is up."
After much debate, some much needed answers were provided.
Gloucester County Emergency Management posted on social media that the widespread and unpleasant odor affecting their eastern-most communities was likely due to an earlier evening mosquito spraying by Atlantic County.
The Atlantic County website says the spraying was rescheduled for Tuesday and it was over portions of Hammonton between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Oddly enough, people in Hammonton say they didn’t smell anything.
Chris Herman says he went out to check after his girlfriend told him about the social media posts, "I went outside and I didn’t smell anything."
Area officials say there was a smell.
The Borough of Clementon Emergency Management stated that the odor was foul, but it was deemed safe.
Despite the answers from area officials, people still have questions.
Redles says, "They’ve come around and sprayed for mosquitoes before, like everyone is saying. It did not smell like mosquito spray."
Some social media posts mentioned people were smelled the odor all the way out in South Philly.