Work To Resume On San Bruno Pipeline
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Pacific Gas & Electric Co. crews were expected to resume work this week in digging up an abandoned segment of natural gas pipeline that was once part of the line that exploded in San Bruno last year.
Crews suspended work on the pipeline in San Bruno on Saturday because some nearby residents said they smelled gas, PG&E spokesman Andrew Souvall said Sunday.
The smell did not come from gas in the pipeline, but from a "small amount of odorant" according to Souvall. "There was no amount gas in the pipe," he said.
Crews were working on a stretch of pipeline has not been in used since 1956, according to Souvall.
The work was being conducted after PG&E had removed an eight-foot long section of the pipe and sent it to the California Public Utilities Commission for inspection.
After the explosion last September that killed eight people and injured dozens, the CPUC ordered the utility to unearth the decommissioned pipe as a part of its investigation
Crews were sending a camera through the remaining 242 feet of pipeline when the work was suspended.
The work on the pipeline will resume after PG&E representatives advise nearby residents that there is no cause for concern if they smell the odorants, said Souvall.
Pacific Gas & Electric also plans on holding informational meetings this week with Burlingame, Hillsborough and San Mateo residents concerning pressure tests the utility will be performing on natural gas pipelines in the area.
PG&E is conducting hydrostatic pressure tests on pipeline segments throughout the state that have been determined to be a high priority after last year's explosion in San Bruno.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
