Lots of damages from gas blowout
Dozens evacuated after issue with gas line in Wilkes-Barre
From an Article by Bill Wellock, Wilkes-Barre Citizens Voice, December 19, 2015
Wilkes-Barre, PA — An issue with a natural gas line Friday morning disrupted the lives of dozens of people in a residential neighborhood in Wilkes-Barre’s Rolling Mill Hill section.
A problem at a regulator station caused excess pressure in a gas line, said UGI Utilities spokesman Joseph Swope. The resulting outage affected about 125 UGI Utilities customers, he said. Utility crews were working at a UGI property near Stanton and Hazle streets. The utility company said it plans to investigate to learn more about the failure.
The problem affected homes on Stanton Street between High and Hazle streets and some side streets south of Stanton, such as Airy Street, Giffith Lane, Harkins Lane and Lloyds Lane. As a precaution, UGI shut off some gas service to Dodson Elementary School, which is in that neighborhood, but classes continued at the school, said Assistant Fire Chief Ed Snarski.
The fire department received a call about a reported structure fire at 9:49 a.m. Friday, soon after it received another call for a fire in a basement and another for the smell of gas in the same area.
“We realized there might be a gas surge in the lines,” Snarski said. The department set up a command post on Stanton Street and began dispatching firefighters to check on homes.
The Wilkes-Barre Fire Department briefly evacuated residents before making sure their was no excess natural gas or fires in the homes. Many residents waited on the street, some with open doors to ventilate their houses.
Most residents were allowed back into their homes within an hour, Snarski said, though they were still waiting for gas service to be restored. Residents reported hearing loud booms or the smell of gas in their homes. Flash fires burned appliances in some homes, Snarski said.
William Levandowski, 52, of Stanton Street, said his furnace caught fire. He shut off the gas main and the fire burned out. “The furnace is toast,” he said.
Dave Waldron, 55, of Stanton Street, was getting ready for work when he went to wake up his daughter, Lindsee, who was home for college break and sleeping in. They heard a loud boom. Dave investigated for a few minutes, and when his wife, Colleen, smelled gas, they called 911 and went outside with their beagle, Stanley. A UGI crew member checked his furnace and water heater. Everything appeared to be unharmed, but the crew member did not know when the Waldrons would have service again, Dave said.
The company planned to start restoring service later Friday and continue into Saturday, but the timing depends on the company’s ability to access homes and inspect equipment, Swope said. The company reminded customers that someone needed to be home for UGI to restore natural gas service.
Customer should not attempt to turn their natural gas service back on by themselves under any circumstances, the company warned. Customers who smell natural gas or have additional questions can call UGI at 1-800-276-2722.
No one reported injuries or sickness, but Snarski said anyone who smelled smoke or gas should call 911. “Ignore nothing,” he said.
People needing a meal or place to warm up can visit the fire station at Parrish and High streets, he said.
See also: www.FrackCheckWV.net
Point Your RSS Reader to FrackCheckWV.net/feed/
