New Pipeline Safety Recommendations After California Explosion

The National Transportation Safety Board has issued an urgent recommendation for

pipeline companies across the country, after the agency found several discrepancies in the manner in which Pacific Gas and Electric Co. maintained its records.The NTSB is investigating a massive gas pipeline explosion in the San Bruno neighborhood in California in September.Eight people were killed when a gas pipeline ruptured and exploded, and dozens of houses were severely injured. Several of them are still recuperating in burn units across the state.

The NTSB has not completed its investigation.However, in preliminary reports, the agency has pointed to discrepancies in records maintained by Pacific Gas & Electric Co.According to the NTSB, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. had mentioned that its pipelines were seamless.However, investigators found the pipeline had several seams.The National Transportation Safety Board believes that the record-keeping problem could also exist in pipelines across the country.The agency has therefore issued an urgent recommendation, warning that other pipeline companies in the country could also be at risk because of incorrect data about their pipes.

Gas pipeline companies that are not aware of these discrepancies could actually be operating a pipeline at a higher rate of pressure than the pipelines can tolerate.According to the National Transportation Safety Board, it may seem like a small matter, but could be serious enough to lead to an explosion.If the pipeline companies are determining their operating pressures based on inadequate or wrong information in their records, then there is a serious threat to safety.

Pipeline companies across the country are being warned to recheck their records, and make sure that there are no discrepancies.The pipelines being operated by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. were recorded as being without seams.Therefore, it was being operated at a higher pressure than it was designed for.However, investigations later showed that the pipeline did have several seams. Such discrepancies could prove deadly for gas pipeline companies.

The National Transportation Safety Board has issued a total of seven recommendations, and six of these have been classified as urgent.The recommendations have been made not just to Pacific Gas and Electric Company, but also the Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration and the California Public Utilities Commission.

While California injury lawyers believe the age of the pipelines played a part in the explosion, the National Transportation Safety Board has not pointed to the age of the pipeline as a huge factor in the explosion.The pipeline that was involved in the explosion was at least 50 to 60 years old.Unfortunately, much of California's pipeline infrastructure dates back at least 50 years.According to utility companies, just because a pipeline is old doesn't necessarily mean that it's damaged the dangers.However, when you combine old, unstable pipelines with wrong operating pressures, the results could be deadly.

by:Robert Reeves

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