A NATURAL GAS PIPELINE EXPLOSION NEAR FRESNO INJURED AT LEAST 11 PEOPLE, 3 CRITICAL, WHEN EXCAVATION EQUIPMENT BROKE THE 12-INCH PG&E PIPELINE.

APRIL 17, 2015

FRESNO, CALIFORNIA (KCRA)

A 12-inch gas pipeline explosion near Fresno injured at least 11 people and shut down a section of Highway 99 for several hours Friday afternoon.

 Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims said three of the people injured are in critical condition and one is in serious condition. They are at a burn and trauma center in Fresno.

Officials initially said 15 people had been injured.

Traffic going north and south on Highway 99 was halted by the explosion at about 2:30 p.m.

All lanes were back open as of 5:15 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.

The explosion happened at the Fresno County Sheriff's gun range, where a work crew including county jail inmates using heavy equipment apparently hit a pipe carrying natural gas, said Tony Botti, a spokesman for the Fresno County Sheriff's Office. One of the workers appeared to be in critical condition, he said.

A nearby rail line was also halted out of concern that a passing train could spark leaking gas.
Witnesses reported seeing a large fireball, said Pete Martinez of the Fresno Fire Department. The flames prompted a two-alarm call of firefighters.

"As I got closer, the flames were just bigger and bigger," said Kevin Ling, who was driving by shortly after the blast. "It was shooting up to 200 feet or more, and a fireball maybe 10 to 15 feet in diameter. It was like out of a movie."

"My window was up and my AC was on and it still felt like a furnace inside my car," he added. 

PG&E crews turned off the gas line and fire crews were able to quickly put out the flames. 

A PG&E crew is at the scene investigating the incident, according to a news release. 

Some people living in the area had to be evacuated from their homes. 

"It was almost like a bomb explosion. Afterwards, it sounded like jets, but it was just the gas shooting out," said resident Isidro Estrada. 

Doing excavation work on the cheap, by using inmates.  Nice one, Fresno sheriff!  From killing unarmed men, to beating unarmed men, and now to using inmates to do construction work next to a gas pipeline, these sheriff’s departments are out of control.  They think they are above the law and above all safety precautions.  We also know they always claim they are injured and double dip by taking a second job.

 

Coast Guard suspends search after remains of a Cessna 180 pilot found near Perry Island, Alaska

APRIL 16, 2015

 

USCG file photo

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA

The Coast Guard suspended its search for a missing pilot near Perry Island in Prince William Sound after his remains were discovered Wednesday evening.

The crew of the Alaska State Trooper vessel Churchhill located and recovered the man’s remains and the wreckage of his Cessna 180 airplane partially submerged along the coast of Culross Island.

Coast Guard, partner agency assets and good Samaritans searched the vicinity of Perry Island and Culross Island near Whittier for 27 hours in rough weather during their efforts to locate the man who went down in the area Tuesday afternoon.

Assets involved in the search included an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew and HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, a Coast Guard Station Valdez 45-foot response boat-medium crew, the crews of the Coast Guard Cutter Mustang and Coast Guard Cutter Sycamore, an Air Force 210th Rescue Squadron HH-60 Pavehawk helicopter crew and 211th Rescue Squadron HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska State Troopers and good Samaritan vessels.

“It is never easy when a search ends like this,” said Capt. Paul Mehler, Sector Anchorage commander. “This was a unified effort between Coast Guard, National Guard, Alaska State Troopers and numerous good Samaritans, and our thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones.”

COAST GUARD SUSPENDS MARINER’S LICENSE FOR NEGLIGENCE, VIOLATIONS OF VESSEL REGULATIONS

APRIL 15, 2015

 

PORTLAND, OREGON

Coast Guard Sector Columbia River personnel suspended the merchant mariner’s license of Richard Chesbrough of Salem March 4, for violating Coast Guard regulations governing small commercial passenger vessel operations and for negligence after the commandant of the Coast Guard affirmed the orders of an administrative law judge.

Chesbrough received a four-month suspension and an 18-month probationary period as a result of charges from two separate complaints for misconduct and negligence. 

In April 2011, Chesbrough knowingly operated the passenger vessel Willamette Queen in river conditions exceeding those authorized in the vessel’s certificate of inspection to carry passengers. In the second complaint, he negligently grounded the Willamette Queen in the Willamette River in May 2012, which led to the evacuation of the passengers. 

The complaints were brought to hearing before an administrative law judge in Portland in September 2011 and February 2013. In both hearings the administrative law judge ordered the license suspended. Chesbrough appealed both decisions to the commandant of the Coast Guard; however a Commandant’s Decisions on Appeal Jan. 23 affirmed both orders issued by the administrative law judge. 

“Licensing professional merchant mariners is a critical component of the regulatory framework that promotes the safety of the public on our nation’s waterways,” said Lt. Benjamin Robinson, chief of investigations division at Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Portland. 

Coast Guard regulations require small commercial passenger vessels for hire, less than 100 gross tons and carrying more than six paying passengers, operating on U.S. navigable waterways be inspected by the Coast Guard. 

Licensed mariners are reminded to follow the operating conditions listed in the vessel’s certificate of inspection to ensure the safety of all passengers aboard. 

While his license is suspended, Chesbrough may not operate a vessel with any number of paying passengers aboard.

COAST GUARD ESCORTS VICTORIA CLIPPER FERRY FOLLOWING VESSEL FIRE NEAR PORT TOWNSEND, WASHINGTON

APRIL 17, 2015

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

Coast Guard crews escorted the passenger ferry Victoria Clipper to Seattle following a reported electrical fire aboard the vessel near Port Townsend, Thursday.

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Terrapin, an 87-foot patrol boat homeported in Bellingham, and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles escorted the Victoria Clipper to its Seattle pier after the ferry’s crewmembers reportedly extinguished the fire aboard the vessel.

The Victoria Clipper was reportedly carrying 223 passengers from Victoria, B.C., to Seattle at the time of the incident. There were no reported injuries.

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound in Seattle received a report from Victoria Clipper personnel of an electrical fire on an anchor windlass in a forward space onboard the vessel around 7:16 p.m.

The Dolphin aircrew and Terrapin crew were diverted from a scheduled training exercise to assist. The Washington State Ferry Operation Center was also notified and was ready to divert a vessel to assist if passengers needed to be transferred from the Victoria Clipper.

“The response of the Victoria Clipper crew was exceptional,” said Lt. Raffael Shamilov, command duty officer at the Coast Guard 13th District Command Center in Seattle.

The Coast Guard will investigate the cause of the fire.

Weather on scene was reported to be calm seas, 3 mph winds and an air temperature of 57 degrees.