Investigation into gas line explosion that injured four continues
Posted: Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:00 am
By JOSH ALLEN Staff Writer
Wagoner Fire Chief Kelly Grooms said he still awaits the testimonies of witnesses that were on the scene of a gas line explosion that occurred west of Wagoner on 220 Road Thursday, Feb. 23.
The explosion critically injured three and severely burned the arms of a fourth person, according to Grooms.
“I plan to wrap up my investigation into the explosion by the first of next week,” Grooms told the American-Tribune on Monday. “I am still waiting on witness statements from three or four of the workers that were on scene at the time of the explosion. I plan to get all of those statements in this week.”
The exact cause of the explosion is unknown, but Grooms said it happened after a telephone crew damaged a six-inch gas line with a boring machine, causing it to leak, while putting in phone lines.
After the telephone workers realized the line was damaged, they called another crew to come out and repair the gas line. The explosion occurred during this repair process, according to Grooms.
Approximately nine Wagoner firemen responded to the scene after receiving the call just after 7 p.m. last Thursday. Grooms said they were on the scene until after 11 p.m.
The four construction workers closest to the explosion were injured and transported to Wagoner Community Hospital by private vehicle. Three of the injured, however, had to be flown by helicopter to a Tulsa-area hospital to treat what officials said were severe injuries.
The names of those injured are not being released at this time, according to Grooms, nor did he know the status of the injured at press time.
No structures were damaged by the fire, but the telephone companies boring machine, which was about 75 feet north of the explosion, was completely destroyed, along with a tractor owned by the contractors working.
“The contractors were able to move a second tractor out of the way when the explosion occurred, which likely saved it,” Grooms said. “The other tractor was completely destroyed.”
Due to the cause of the fire being a gas line, Grooms said they did not extinguish the flames right away for safety reasons.
“We first made sure everyone was safe and out of the way and then set up a perimeter around the fire to wait on the gas to be cut off to stop the leak,” Grooms said. “There was gas shooting out of the line about 12 feet in the air. If we had put it out without stopping the leak, gas would have kept escaping out of the line and building up, creating gas pockets. That could have caused another explosion.”
“When the gas isn’t burning, it can’t be seen, so we waited on a construction crew to come out and dig around the line so they could snip the line and cut the leak off,” he continued. “There were a couple of valves that the workers tried to shut off before the explosion, but it obviously didn’t shut the flow of the gas off all the way.”
Grooms said people should always pay attention to gas line warning signs before starting to dig and keep safety precautions in mind.
“It’s hard to say right now what caused this, but people should always pay attention to gas line warning signs before starting to dig,” Grooms said. “Without knowing exactly what caused the explosion, it’s hard to say how to be preventative in the future.”
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3 people critically injured in Oklahoma gas well explosion
Published February 24, 2017
Associated Press
WAGONER, Okla. – Authorities say four people were injured when a private natural gas well exploded in eastern Oklahoma.
Wagoner County Emergency Manager Heath Underwood says the explosion happened Thursday night as contract workers were repairing a gas line near Wagoner, about 125 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.
Underwood says three workers were critically injured and two of them were flown from the scene by air ambulance.
The Tulsa World reports that the gas line had been damaged by a truck earlier in the day.
Underwood says emergency responders cut off the gas line to the well and allowed the fire to burn out. Firefighters were able to contain the blaze despite high-risk wildfire conditions that sparked a grassfire in nearby Coweta.
MEDINA, Ohio - An explosion and fire at an apartment in Medina that killed a mother and her son earlier this month was caused by a natural gas leak within the building, according to a preliminary ruling from the State Fire Marshal.
While an official ruling on the final cause could still be days or weeks away, Dan Gladish, the chief building official for Medina said a 1/2 inch gas valve was open and it wasn't capped.
Gladish said the valve was not in use, and at one time, was connected to a gas dryer.
The building official believes natural gas poured into an apartment for at least two hours before the explosion.
"A 50 cent cap or a 50 cent plug could have most likely prevented this from happening," Gladish said.
The explosion happened at the Medina Village Apartments on Springbrook Drive on Feb. 9.
Jacob Harley Drake, 18, died as a result of the fire. Authorities said he had special needs and was confined to a wheelchair.
His mother, Sheila Drake, was pronounced dead on Feb. 20. As of Tuesday morning, her husband, Robert Drake, was in fair condition at MetroHealth Medical Center.
The blast also left numerous families homeless.
Several days after the explosion, gas company inspectors found more than 80 gas leaks throughout the complex, including 10 that were similar to the interior leak where the explosion happened, Gladish told News 5.
"There were 10 uncapped valves, so if we find that an uncapped valve and wide open valve led to this disaster, it could have happened 10 more times."
Management at the apartment complex referred questions to an attorney, Thomas Cabral.
Cabral said an investigation is on-going and that he would comment "down the road."
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MEDINA, Ohio - An 18-year-old man was killed in an early morning apartment fire in Medina.
Emergency crews were called to the Medina Village Apartments at Springbrook Drive around 3:15 a.m. Thursday for a report of an explosion.
An 18-year-old, who had special needs and was confined to a wheelchair, was pronounced dead at the scene.
His parents were badly burned. They were taken to MetroHealth Medical Center in critical condition.
The Medina fire chief originally told News 5 the mother had died at the hospital. However, at 11:30 a.m. a MetroHealth Medical Center spokesperson said the woman was still listed in critical condition.
The apartment building was destroyed. About 20 residents are now displaced.
The Ohio State Fire Marshal responded to the scene to investigate.
Gas crews are trying to figure out what could have caused the fire. The Medina Fire Departments said it hasn't responded to any gas leaks or calls at this complex in at least a year. A few weeks ago, crews performed some work on water lines and the city said the building inspection showed no further problems.
According to the American Red Cross, eight families were displaced by the fire, affecting 18 people. They're providing food, clothing, shelter and financial assistance.
Residents Hannah Morabito,17, and her mother Lori Morabito,53, are among the residents affected by the fire.The mother was trapped under a wall and cinder blocks that collapsed. Hannah had to pull her mother out of the rubble.
Crews now working to recover body of 18-year-old. Chief says parents tried to save him, but were unable. @wews pic.twitter.com/Uwg6v2PZ2s— Sarah Phinney (@sarahphinneytv) February 9, 2017
Columbia Gas issued a statement Thursday afternoon:
Our crews conducted a thorough investigation of our natural gas main and service lines that serve the area and confirmed that they are safe. While the cause of the incident is not known at this time, based on our investigation, our natural gas main lines and service lines were not the source of this incident.
Read the full statement below.
Columbia Gas Statement on Medina
The Medina United Church of Christ is taking donations from February 10 through February 24 for victims of the fire and the Red Cross is assisting 18 people from 8 families.
“Educating the elderly about fire safety is paramount to their survival. It’s a fact that older adults, ages 65 and higher, are more likely to die in home fires than the rest of the population. People can save their lives, and the lives of others, by staying informed and taking steps to prevent fires from starting,” says FDNY Lieutenant Anthony Mancuso, Executive Director of Fire Safety Education.
In 2016, FDNY recorded the lowest number of fire deaths in New York City history. Of those 48 deaths, 21 were New Yorkers age 65 or older.
“A working smoke/CO detector is extremely important for early detection of a fire. An early warning will give more time to escape safely,” says Lt. Mancuso. “We know that a working smoke alarm can cut your risk of dying in a fire in half. We want to remind all New Yorkers, especially seniors, that this simple step can save your life.
The FDNY encourages seniors to have a plan in mind in the event of a fire, including an escape route with at least two exits per room. It is important to practice these escape routes. This includes practicing unlocking and opening windows, security gates and doors as well as making sure stairways and exit are clear of clutter and storage.”
Eyewitness News
Wednesday, March 01, 2017 05:33PM
CLAREMONT VILLAGE, Bronx (WABC) -- More than 160 firefighters battled a four-alarm fire that broke out in row houses in the Bronx Wednesday afternoon, injuring six people.
The fire started on the top floor of a two-story home on College Avenue in the Claremont Village section at about 1:30 p.m. It then spread to five other homes.
The FDNY said the fire response quickly grew, going from a two-alarm fire to four alarms in about 20 minutes.
Everyone was able to get out safely. Though, one civilian and five firefighters were treated for minor injuries.
Fire officials said it appeared the fire had been burning for quite a while before the FDNY was called to the scene.
FDNY spokesman Jim Long said the four units in the middle unit have extensive damage, and three of them are likely beyond repair.
Twenty families are displaces as a result of the fire, and the Red Cross is assisting.
The 2016 Annual Report of the Office of Flood Insurance Advocate
Executive Summary
The Office of the Flood Insurance Advocate (OFIA) advocates for the fair treatment of policyholders and property owners, or customers, by providing education and guidance on all aspects of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), identifying trends affecting the public, and making recommendations for program improvements to Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration (FIMA) leadership. This report highlights six areas of customer frustration related to the NFIP, specifically in relation to flood insurance, flood hazard mapping, Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grants, and floodplain management.
The issues emerged to the OFIA while assisting customers with their questions and concerns, a primary activity for the OFIA stemming from its mandate outlined in Section 24 of the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 (HFIAA). In this report the OFIA aims to advocate to the FIMA program offices with recommendations to address these issues that
will have the greatest positive impact for a larger population of NFIP customers.
The six issues presented in this report are as follows:
• Erroneous Severe Repetitive Loss (SRL) Properties Designation: A subset of policyholders have buildings that are incorrectly identified as being an SRL property, even after the property has been mitigated. The complicated appeal process makes it challenging for policyholders to correct the designation, resulting in some property owners facing a 25% increase to their annual premiums.
• Gaps in Flood Insurance Agent Education: Flood insurance education for insurance agents who sell and service NFIP flood insurance needs to be more robust. In addition to the twice yearly standard program changes, the NFIP is undergoing significant change due to legislative reform. The one-time, three-hour flood insurance training requirement is not sufficient to ensure customers are being sold an accurately rated flood insurance policies
and agents are communicating correct information about the NFIP.
• The Need for Consistency Across Regions in Public Mapping Outreach:
Policyholders and property owners continue to face significant challenges in obtaining consistent and understandable mapping information and outreach-related information across FEMA’s 10 Regions. Policyholders and property owners need answers to their questions regarding the effects map revisions have on flood insurance, such as how they will impact premiums, the requirement to purchase a policy, and associated refund procedures.
• Difficulties Accessing Increased Cost of Compliance (ICC) Coverage:
Customers continue to be frustrated with several issues related to the ICC portion of the claim process. One issue is that insurers do not advance ICC payments to policyholders in order to pay contractors to begin mitigation projects. Policyholders are also confused when they are denied ICC, because they have received the maximum amount of building coverage available under the NFIP, but have been paying premium for ICC coverage. It also appears there is not enough readily accessible ICC guidance to assist policyholders with successfully navigating the ICC claim process. Finally, there continues to be a concern that the maximum amount of ICC coverage available ($30,000) under the NFIP is insufficient to complete most mitigation projects.
• Difficulties with Multiple and Conflicting Flood Zone Determinations: Flood zone determinations by multiple entities are a major issue affecting policyholders and property owners. Confusion occurs when property owners are told by their lender they must pur- chase flood insurance because their building is located within a high risk flood area.
However, their insurance agent determines their building is located in a moderate-to-low risk flood area and the requirement to purchase flood insurance does not apply. This is confusing when both sources use the same flood map to make the flood zone determi- nation, leaving the property owner
frustrated. Flood zone discrepancies can also cause premium rating disputes that may require policyholders to pay more for flood insurance. There is no clear path for these different sources to work together to solve the discrepancy.
• Inability to Obtain a Refund of the HFIAA Surcharge When Canceling an NFIP Policy: Policyholders are voicing concerns about the inability to obtain a refund of the surcharge from the NFIP when policies are canceled and a full or pro rata portion of the premium is returned.
The OFIA will continue to work on the NFIP issues and OFIA recommendations by engaging with the FIMA program offices to discuss, understand, and identify opportunities that exist to address these issues for policyholders and property owners. The issues in this report arepresented in three parts: the key issue affecting customers, the background of the issue, and the OFIA’s recommendations for program’s consideration. FIMA program office’s responses
are included as received.
