Two years ago, on the night of Sept. 9, 2010, the city of San Bruno, Calif., looked like a battle zone.
With a deafening roar and a geyser of flames that could be seen for miles, a natural gas line explosion decimated a residential neighborhood near Skyline Boulevard and Interstate 280 in San Bruno.
The scene of the explosion could have been something out of a war movie. Houses and trees were engulfed in towering flames and a 167-foot-long crater emerged where Glenview Drive had once been. The power had been cut off so the only light came from emergency vehicles and the flames of the fire. Firefighting helicopters soared overhead, while on the ground below there was chaos as neighbors helped each other and searched for loved ones.
Witnesses reported that the force of the blast initially led them to believe there was an earthquake, while other witnesses reported that the flames billowed a terrifying 300 feet into the sky.
The eight-alarm fire burned for several hours, despite the two hundred firefighters trying to contain the flames. After blasting a crater in the street, destroying 53 homes, damaging 120 others, and injuring at least 20 people, the San Bruno community was shaken.
And they had some serious questions as to where this explosion came from and why it had occurred.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) officials said the explosion was caused by one of the company’s ruptured gas transmission lines. Why the gas line ruptured had not yet been determined.
After the explosion, PG&E was required by the California Public Utilities Commission to re-evaluate the safety of their pipeline system.
Soon after the blast, investigators made some disturbing discoveries: PG&E didn’t know the characteristics of the pipe that failed and, according national media, PG&E admitted that its record-keeping was chaotic.
On Jan. 17, PG&E admitted that it had lost track of development of more than 300 miles of gas-transmission lines. In July of 2011, PG&E had already opened itself up for numerous state penalties when it conceded that it had failed to reclassify 172 miles of pipeline that once ran through rural areas (those rural areas are now surrounded by schools, neighborhoods, and shopping malls).
Because of this recent admission, PG&E is now subject to additional fines as a result of violating federal law, in addition to the state penalties and more than 100 civil lawsuits that the company is facing.
Safety regulations demand that gas transmission lines in populated areas be regularly inspected for pressure to limit potential damage. PG&E said that in order to comply with federal regulation, it had to reduce pressure on 8 1/2 miles of pipeline.
But here’s the kicker: PG&E has yet to identify where this misclassified pipeline is located. PG&E has approximately 5,700 miles of pipeline, a third of that network running through urban areas.
On Jan. 12, PG&E issued a press release from the utilities president, Chris Johns, regarding the San Bruno investigation.
“We are taking their findings very seriously and we will cooperate fully with the investigation. It is clear that PG&E’s past gas operations practices were not what they should have been,” Johns said.
PG&E also said that it will be making further safety improvements within its pipeline system, which includes testing and replacing lines, installing automated shut-off valves, updating emergency response plans, and installing a pipeline modernization plan that “will apply new, stricter standards to older pipelines.”
And hold on to your wallets PG&E customers, because rates could go up so these safety measures are funded. According to a document PG&E filed with state regulators in August 2011, its customers will likely be footing 90 percent of the bill to make the pipeline system safer.
Meanwhile, the San Bruno community continues to rebuild and demands that PG&E be held responsible for the nations’ deadliest gas line explosion.
Family members of those who lost loved ones and/or their homes in the explosion have formed a nonprofit group, the Gas Pipe Safety Foundation. The group plans to raise awareness of gas line safety issues through media outlets, advocacy, and outreach to other explosion victims.
“We have admitted these short-comings and we are committed to raising the level of pipeline safety to new, higher standards,” PG&E’s Johns said. “Nothing is more important to us.”
This article appears in Jan 26 – Feb 2, 2012.
