In Merrimack Valley Gas Explosion Aftermath, Hot Plates And A Job Fair
September 22, 2018
Quincy Walters
National Guardsmen walk through the streets of Lawrence on Saturday, distributing hot plates to residents who were left without gas. (Quincy Walters)
National guardsmen rolled through the streets of Merrimack Valley towns on Saturday to help distribute hot plates to residents whose homes still have no gas service in the aftermath of natural gas explosions and fires in Lawrence, Andover and North Andover.
One resident who came to get a hot plate, Deb Putnam, says it was getting really hard cooking without her gas stove. “The first night we were home, I was going to put some pasta on and stir-fry zucchini. And I went, ‘uh no! I can’t do that.’ So, I’m looking up, ‘Can I cook pasta in a microwave?’ Supposedly, you can. I didn’t try it. We came up with plan B.”
Putnam says before today, she was getting worried, since the restaurants in the area still aren’t open and there’s no guaranteed date that the area will get gas.
As it begins its restoration effort, Columbia Gas is also looking for temporary workers. The company held a job fair at the Greater Lawrence Technical School in Andover on Saturday to try to recruit.
The utility says that going forward, it will be doing repairs in neighborhoods where the primary language isn’t English.
Gloria Espada came to interview for an interpreter job. She says her adult children don’t have gas. “So what better than to have the opportunity to improve the process?” she says. “The holidays are coming, I was working part-time currently, taking care of my elderly mother. So, it’ll work very well.”
Columbia Gas say they’re looking for bilingual plumbers, electricians, IT workers and customer service representatives.
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Hotplates for cooking and space heaters for warmth will be distributed to thousands of Massachusetts residents left without natural gas following a series of explosions and fires.
Utility officials, meanwhile, pledged Friday to restore natural gas service by Nov. 19 as they replace 48 miles of natural gas pipeline. The Sept. 13 disaster killed one person, injured some 25 others and damaged or destroyed dozens of homes and businesses.
Republican Gov. Charlie Baker says he's activated the National Guard to help distribute hotplates to residents of Lawrence, Andover and North Andover starting Saturday.
Space heaters will be available starting Wednesday, with electricians sent to homes to assure the devices are installed safely.
Baker also announced that retired U.S. Navy Capt. Joe Albanese would serve as chief recovery officer for the restoration project.