Natural gas leak blamed for Ohio home explosion
The Associated Press
November 09, 2017 2:11 AM
COLUMBUS, Ohio
Investigators say a natural gas leak contributed to the home explosion in Ohio that killed a 54-year-old woman, but the cause of the leak is still unknown.
In a statement Wednesday, Columbia Gas says they are confident their main lines and service lines did not contribute to the explosion.
Emergency responders received several calls from neighbors around 4 a.m. Monday after the explosion in southeastern Columbus.
Shelly Williams was pulled from the debris and her longtime boyfriend, 59-year-old Stewart Bell, was thrown from the home. Williams later died from her injuries. Their family dog survived.
Bell tells The Columbus Dispatch he smelled gas in the area last week, but he didn't call because there was no smell inside the house.
An investigation continues.
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MADISON TOWNSHIP, Ohio -- A natural gas leak contributed to Monday's deadly home explosion in southeastern Franklin County.
Investigators from the State Fire Marshal's Office and Columbia Gas have been on the scene since Monday.
Wednesday night, they were still there searching for answers.
State investigators said they have preliminarily determined that the explosion was related to a natural gas leak.
The origin of that leak - whether inside the home, or out - is still unknown.
Columbia Gas confirms there was a gas "incident" of some kind. They too are working to find the source.
In an updated statement released Wednesday afternoon, Columbia Gas said, "Our crews have conducted thorough inspections of our service lines and main lines and confirmed they are safe. Based on our inspections and observations to date, we remain confident that our main lines and service lines did not contribute to this incident."
It was 4 a.m. Monday that the two-story home on Everson Road East in Madison Township exploded, with two people and a dog inside.
The man who lived there, 59 year-old Stewart Bell, was thrown from the home.
His longtime girlfriend, 54 year-old Shelly Williams, was trapped in the debris.
Neighbors ran to the scene to help rescue her. She was rushed to the hospital, where she died later that day.
The family dog crawled out of the rubble about 45 minutes after the explosion.
Columbia Gas is stressing to the public that if you smell the odor of natural gas, leave the area immediately, call 911 and your gas company.
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Updated statement from Columbia Gas:
Our thoughts are with the family and community dealing with the loss and impact of the tragic incident in Madison Township.
In cooperation with the State Fire Marshal’s Office, Madison Township Fire Department, and the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, Columbia Gas of Ohio has participated in the investigation of the incident at 3335 Everson Road East.
Our crews have conducted thorough inspections of our service lines and main lines and confirmed they are safe. Based on our inspections and observations to date, we remain confident that our main lines and service lines did not contribute to this incident.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office will continue its investigation to determine the actual cause of the incident. We will continue to support their investigation.
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It’s unclear what caused an explosion that leveled a house in southeastern Franklin County early Monday, killing a woman and injuring a man.
Neighbors reported a house explosion to emergency crews at 3:59 a.m. in the 3300 block of Everson Road East, a Madison Township Police dispatcher said.
“It was just unreal walking out and my neighbor’s house is just gone,” said Mikayla Grubb, 18, who lived next door to the couple and whose family rushed to their aid.
The man and woman who lived at the house were transported to Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center. Shelly Williams, 54, died at the hospital from injuries she suffered when she fell from a second story bedroom to the first floor. The roof collapsed on top of her. Neighbors pulled her out of the rubble.
Stewart Bell, 59, remained hospitalized Monday evening. His condition was not available. He was ejected from the first story of the home during the explosion and landed in the driveway area, said Battalion Chief Chris Pallos.
“They’re very nice. The lady, she mowed our front lawn before, when we were at work. Our lawnmower was broken,” Grubb said. “Stew waves at you every time he sees you.”
The couple had two dogs. Grubb’s family found one of the two dogs, a Husky-type breed, and took the dog to a veterinarian. There was no word on what happened to the smaller dog.
Debris was strewn all over the yard, shards of glass littered the driveway and flames and smoke were seen on the property in a neighborhood east of Noe Bixby Road and south of Chatterton Road. Neighbors reported that items fell off the walls and shelves inside their homes.
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November 7, 2017
One nearby home had melted vinyl siding and the explosion launched a 2x4 piece of wood through an exterior wall, knocking over a cabinet inside, Pallos said.
The fire was mainly out by about 6 a.m., with a second relief crew showing up at 7 a.m. to put out hot spots that were still smouldering, Pallos said.
Kelly Stincer, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of State Fire Marshal, said the cause was not determined Monday evening.
Kelli Gaza Nowinsky, a Columbia Gas of Ohio spokeswoman, said when the company’s crews arrived, they turned off the gas line at the curb to residence as well as to neighboring homes.
She said the company received a complaint of odor of gas in the same neighborhood in July 2014. A re-inspection was completed in January 2015, however the company responded to odor calls five other dates within six months of the initial complaint, according to records from the Public Utilities commission.
“The caller states the odor is very strong some days and feels the company is not taking the issue seriously enough,” according to a report dated Feb. 2015.
The leak was classified as level 2, or non-hazardous. State law allows the company 15 months to schedule repairs, with monitoring every six months. It’s unclear if the leak was repaired.
Inspectors with Columbia Gas routinely walk neighborhoods to complete leak surveys. The last conducted there was in April 2016. Nothing was detected at the time, Gaza Nowinsky said.
“This is the most important thing. If people think they smell natural gas, they have to call 911 and Columbia Gas,” she said referring to a rotten egg smell that often accompanies leaks.
Court-ordered mediation was to begin this week concerning the March 21, 2015, gas-line explosion in Upper Arlington that destroyed or damaged more than two dozen homes.
More than 30 plaintiffs are involved in 10 lawsuits against Columbia Gas, the cities of Columbus and Upper Arlington, a paving company and consultant.
The couple was not home at the time and no one was seriously injured in the blast.
An investigation found that a Columbus water division worker opened an old gas line to the house that was incorrectly marked as a water valve. When the error became apparent the worker did not fully close the valve, and gas leached through the foundation.
The Public Utilities commission fined Columbia $200,000 after the compnay promised to accelerate a plan to precisely locate old and new lines and valves, check its records for any obvious location errors and open a training center to help emergency responders deal with gas-line hazards.
Dispatch Reporter Earl Rinehart contributed to this story.
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