By: Laura Bauer
Source: The Kansas City Star (TNS)
Days before last month’s gas explosion that killed a 5-year-old boy in Lexington, Missouri, Liberty Utilities sent a locator to mark all buried utilities where subcontractors would soon begin digging.
But the section of the line involved in the explosion “was not identified or marked during this process,” according to information released Monday afternoon in a preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Just after 4 p.m. on April 9, the subcontractor who was among the crew helping install fiber optic cable in the area of Franklin Avenue and 17th Street began drilling into the “unmarked section of a capped underground gas distribution main,” the report said.
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“The Alfra Construction work crew member operating the drill felt the drill strike an object,” the preliminary report said. “The work crew saw and smelled odorized natural gas being released.”
More than three hours later, after neighbors had repeatedly reported smelling gas, the explosion occurred inside a home along Franklin Avenue near 17th Street, killing Alistair Lamb, 5, and severely injuring his father, Jacob Cunningham, and his sister, Camillia “Cami” Lamb, 10.
The work crew’s supervisor called 911 and 811—Missouri’s notification “Call before you dig” system—and reported a damaged gas line.
The Lexington Fire Department arrived soon after and personnel from Liberty Utilities, a subsidiary of Algonquin Power and Utilities Corporation, began arriving at about 4:39 p.m., the report said.
“Liberty Utilities personnel attempted to isolate the leak by squeezing off the main,” the report said, “but did not succeed in stopping the flow of gas.”
Focus of NTSB investigation
Angry neighbors have questioned why no one called for homes in the area to be evacuated after numerous reports of gas odors.
But Monday’s report revealed that people inside one business near the damaged pipe were asked to leave.
“At the direction of Liberty Utilities, a business about 15 feet from the leak was evacuated before the explosion,” the report said.
Yet, other nearby buildings and residences—including the destroyed and damaged ones—were not evacuated, the report said. Those locations were about 80 to 160 feet from the leak.
In the days after the explosion, several neighbors told The Star they were disgusted and disappointed at what they see as the city’s lax and negligent handling of a gas line break.
For hours, they said, residents received no warnings of possible danger.
But no one in authority has responded to that criticism or explained why homes near the leak weren’t evacuated and whose call that was. City officials have said no one from Lexington could speak about the incident after the NTSB launched an investigation.
A spokeswoman with Liberty Utilities, the company whose line was damaged, also has referred all questions to the NTSB.
The safety board continues its investigation. In Monday’s report, the NTSB laid out what its “future investigative activity will focus on.”
That will include, the report said, looking at Liberty Utilities’ responses to 811 requests, leak and repair history and record keeping, as well as the local emergency response last month and evacuation procedures.
Sarah K. Magruder Lyle, president and CEO of Common Ground Alliance, the national association that publishes best practices for preventing damage to utility lines, issued a statement about Monday’s report. It’s a reminder, she said, that “contacting 811 before digging is the first step — but not the only step.”
“Preventing damage to buried utilities takes everyone doing their part, including utility facility owners, locators and excavators,” she said. “That’s why best practices exist when digging around buried utility lines, to protect the lives of those working around utilities and the broader community.
“Accurately locating and marking underground utilities relies on accurate maps of those utilities. … What already happened in Lexington can’t be changed — but communities everywhere are relying on industry stakeholders to make changes and get this right.”
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