advertisement

240 homes affected by latest gas line rupture

<span>CHESTER -- For the second time in two weeks, firefighters and City of Chester employees were called to Opdyke Street on Tuesday to deal with a natural gas leak that occurred when workers with Haier Plumbing and Heating struck a line in the street's 400 block.</span>

<span>Haier has been installing the new water line along Opdyke south to Chester Grade School.</span>

<span>This time, service was interrupted for 240 homes along six streets generally in the south side of Chester. Originally, it was reported that 90 gas meters had to be shut off.</span>

<span>"That's how many they shut off right away and we figured later it would be a lot more than that," said Chester Gas Department Superintendent Jeremy Homan.</span>

<span>According to the Chester Fire Department, affected streets were William, Frederick, John, Crosby, Cole Place Road and on Opdyke from William to Mill streets.</span>

<span>Gas service to CGS was also temporarily shut off.</span>

<span>"(The line) was buried 18 inches deep, but there was a lot of rock and old concrete in the hole and the contractor thought he was pulling up a chunk of concrete," Homan said.</span>

<span> Homan said the rupture occurred at a T junction of two lines, a 2-inch and a 4-inch, that required 10 hours to repair.</span>

<span>"Honestly, the deal in August really prepared me for this," Homan said, referencing the August 16, 2014 gas leak incident that resulted in the evacuation of roughly 60 homes in a four-block radius of the 1500 block of Swanwick Street. "It was a lot easier to manage and this was a worse situation with a full 2-inch line blown out of the ground.</span>

<span>"It wasn't on fire and that makes it worse for a possible ignition."</span>

<span>Initially, workers were able to close off the 4-inch line, but the 2-inch line nearby resulted in gas still bleeding out. Crews had to dig up part of an alley near George Street to access the second line.</span>

<span>"We closed two valves on the 4-inch line and still had the 2-inch line that was feeding it and we had to dig another hole to squeeze off that line," Homan said. "They also hit two water service lines right past the gas."</span>

<span>In the May 4 gas leak, the line was buried directly underneath the sidewalk at the corner of William and Opdyke. That incident resulted in the temporary evacuation of four homes in a one-block radius around the scene.</span>

<span>A Haier employee, walking past media at the scene of Tuesday's incident, said that the latest leak would be the "last time" as workers are nearly done with the $323,000 project.</span>

<span>"They're done with the water main installation," Homan said. "They're coming back and putting all the services back for the houses on that line."</span>

<span>Two weeks ago, a worker with a back hoe pulled a gas line loose from its pipe tap at the intersection of William and Opdyke, roughly a hundred yards north of Tuesday's leak on the opposite side of Opdyke. </span>

<span>The line was not ruptured.</span>

<span>"My only guess is back when they put those lines in, there was a lot of rock and it was easier at the time," Homan said, when asked why the lines were buried so shallow in that section of town. "Our lines were put in in 1959 and there was not a whole lot of regulation regarding depth and maximum cover."</span>

<span>Firefighters with the Chester and Ellis Grove fire departments assisted the Chester Gas Department with the shutting off of gas meters, while officers with the Chester Police Department handled traffic control.</span>

<span>City of Chester employees went door-to-door on Wednesday and Thursday to relight pilot lights for affected residents.</span>

<span>"I just want to thank the fire department and the police department for their assistance," Homan said. "I even want to thank Haier Plumbing. They were right there to help me dig it up and shut it off and were very compliant."</span>

<span> </span>