Oil/Gas Pipelines

NASSCO Standard Bearers: Mark Metcalf

This month, NASSCO honors Mark Metcalf who epitomizes the association’s commitment to serving the industry in a positive manner. My original career plan was to get into real estate. I received my bachelor’s of science degree in business administration from Arizona State University in 1973, but inst..

Fiber-Optic Cable Cuts Affect Mediacom Customers in 3 States

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Thousands of Mediacom internet and television customers have experienced service interruptions in Georgia, Illinois and Missouri after a pair of large fiber-optic cables were accidentally cut. Mediacom Communications spokeswoman Phyllis Peters says a mower for a road crew..

Sunoco to Connect Homes With Tainted Wells to Public Water

WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) — Sunoco Pipeline LP is paying to connect municipal water to about 30 Pennsylvania residences whose well water was contaminated while the company built its Mariner East 2 Pipeline. Sunoco says the residents in West Whiteland Township are being connected to Aqua Pennsylv..

Officials: Private Pipe Source of Portland Sewer Spill

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The Portland Bureau of Environmental Services says the source of a 27,000-gallon sewage leak Sunday into a creek was a privately-owned pipe and not a city sewer line. The agency said Wednesday that while that pipe was designed to carry only rainwater to Woods Creek, it appears..

North Carolina Town Under Boil Advisory Due to Water Leak

EDENTON, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina town is under a boil water advisory because of a water leak. WITN-TV reports officials in Edenton are telling residents to boil water at least through noon Wednesday. According to the town, the water main leak on West Queen Street at Filbert’s Creek has led to..

Water System Failure Forces Closure of Indiana Welcome Center

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — Officials say a welcome center along Interstate 70 in western Indiana has been closed since April because its well and water infrastructure failed. The Tribune-Star reports (http://bit.ly/2tamyAR ) the Clear Creek Welcome Center, which is located in Vigo County near the Ill..

Excavator Hits Gas Line, Causes Leak

WARREN, R.I. (AP) — Officials say about 50 people had to be evacuated after a worker hit a main gas line in Rhode Island. Warren Fire Chief Alexander Galinelli says natural gas poured into the air for about two hours after an excavator hit the gas main in Warren Monday. Firefighters went door to d..

Jail Temporarily Takes Inmates Due to Water Main Break

AMHERST, Va. (AP) — Inmates at a Virginia jail were temporarily transferred to another jail following a water main break in a nearby town. The Amherst New Era-Progress reports 98 inmates at the Pittsylvania County Jail were moved to the Amherst County Adult Detention Center on Friday after th..

Broken Sewer Line Found Near Popular New York Beach

LAKE GEORGE, N.Y. (AP) — Authorities are trying to determine if a recently discovered broken sewer line is a source of pollution that has closed a popular Adirondack lake beach several times since last summer. The Post-Star of Glens Falls reports (http://bit.ly/2sZNyaM ) public works crews in the v..

Three Men Die From Suspected Toxic Fumes in Saipan Sewer Project

HAGATNA, Guam (AP) – Authorities say three men died while working inside a sewer manhole on Saipan. The Pacific Daily News reports (http://bit.ly/2u3EAtb ) counsel for the Commonwealth Utilities Corporation, Attorney James Sirok, says it’s suspected toxic fumes killed the three men Friday. The Com..

Newspaper: New York Had Big Sewer Spill, Didn't Report It on Time

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) – New York’s capital city has spilled 4 million gallons (15 million liters) of sewage into the Hudson River in the last two weeks and didn’t meet state requirements for reporting the problem quickly, a newspaper reported. Albany filed notice of the spills with the state ..

Break-Prone Grand Canyon Water Pipeline Needs Replacement

Grand Canyon National Park officials plan to replace much of a decades-old, problem-plagued pipeline system that’s forced officials to ask hotels and residents to wash dishes and laundry less frequently and backpackers to drink treated creek water. Crews regularly have to descend into the northern ..

City Water Department Van Slides into Sinkhole in Cleveland

CLEVELAND (AP) — Officials say no one was injured when a city water department van slid into a sinkhole that opened up beneath it in Cleveland. The Cleveland Division of Water says the van fell through the ground on the city’s east side on Thursday afternoon. Officials say the water department e..

Coroner: Utility Worker Killed by Debris from Gas Explosion

LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) — A coroner says a utility worker was killed by flying debris when a Pennsylvania house exploded while he was responding to a reported natural gas leak. The National Transportation Safety Board continues to lead the investigation into Sunday afternoon’s blast in Manor Township. ..

Indiana Takes Action Against County for Sewer Pollution

NEW CASTLE, Ind. (AP) — The state of Indiana has taken action against Henry County after complaints of sewage polluting a creek, residential properties and the grounds of a swimming pool. The Star Press reports (http://tspne.ws/2sCOuC1 ) the Indiana Department of Environmental Management filed a no..

Broken Pipe Leaves 100 Without Water in Connecticut

DANBURY, Conn. (AP) — Officials in Danbury, Connecticut say a water main break left about 100 people without water service for several hours. The city’s Public Utilities Department says the break occurred on a four-inch pipe under Oak Ridge Avenue around 7 a.m. Wednesday. Director David Day says w..

Water Service Disrupted at Kansas City Airport Terminal

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Crews at Kansas City International Airport are working to restore water service to one of its terminals after a water main broke. Officials say the 12-inch pipe failed Tuesday afternoon, forcing crews to shut off water to the airport’s Terminal B. Portable toilets were broug..

Utility Worker Killed in Apparent Gas Explosion Identified

LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a utility worker killed in an apparent natural gas explosion that destroyed a Pennsylvania house and injured several other workers over the weekend. The Lancaster County coroner’s office said 54-year-old Richard Bouder, of East Lampeter To..

NTSB Heading Investigation into Fatal Natural Gas Explosion

LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) — The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation into an apparent natural gas explosion that destroyed a Pennsylvania home and killed a utility worker. The UGI Utilities worker was checking out a reported gas odor when the house in Manor Township, near Lan..

Missing Pipe Caused Sewage to Spill into Arkansas Creek

BENTONVILLE, Ark. (AP) – A gap in a wastewater connection in a northwestern Arkansas city sent sewage spilling into a local creek. Bentonville public works director Mike Bender tells the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/2sZIfqj ) that the sewer issue has been repaired and the Town..

Cut Fiber Optic Cable Forces North Carolina DMV Offices to Close

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — An internet network outage in central North Carolina has forced approximately 35 driver license and license plate agency offices to suspend services. The N.C. Department of Transportation said in a news release that Division of Motor Vehicles officials were told by Time W..

2 Dead, 3 Injured After Indiana House Explosion

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) — Firefighters found two bodies in the basement of a southwest Indiana house after it was destroyed by an explosion and fire Tuesday that also injured three people. Searchers located the first body amid the rubble about four hours after the explosion was reported around 8:45 a..

Broken Illinois Line Dumping Sewage Into Mississippi River

GRANITE CITY, Ill. (AP) — Authorities say a sewer line in southern Illinois broke last month and daily is dumping about 2 million gallons of storm water and sewage into the Mississippi River. The Belleville News-Democrat reported Friday (http://bit.ly/2t3KVEi ) that the Metro East Sanitary Di..

Couple Escapes Just Before Gas Explosion Rocks LA Home

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Authorities say an elderly Los Angeles couple escaped just before an explosion rocked their home after a contractor accidentally severed a gas line. Assistant Fire Chief Patrick Butler says the couple was saved by a gas company worker who called them out of the house moment..

Settlement Approved in 2016 Seattle Natural Gas Explosion

SEATTLE (AP) — The state’s largest energy utility will pay at least $1.5 million for a natural gas explosion in Seattle’s Greenwood neighborhood last year. The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission on Monday approved a settlement between Puget Sound Energy and commission staff reached ..

Drain Pipe Collapse Forces Street Closure in Macomb County

HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — A drainage pipe collapse has forced the closure of a street in Macomb County’s Harrison Township. The Macomb Daily of Mount Clemens reports (http://bit.ly/2tl9ObK ) Monday that the 48-inch pipe beneath North River Road near Interstate 94 collapsed Friday. ..

Downed Power Line Ignites Gas Leak in Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Residents of about 40 homes near Pittsburgh have been forced to stay inside after a downed power line ignited a leaking natural gas line, causing a fire. A tree downed by lightning is being blamed for knocking down the wire early Monday, just after midnight. Sparks from the downed..

TTC Celebrates 10-Year Partnership With China For Trenchless R&D

For 27 years, the Trenchless Technology Center (TTC), an industry/university/government research center at Louisiana Tech University, has served as a global leader for the development of technologies influencing almost every aspect of trenchless construction methods.  In April, the TTC’s Dr. Thomas ..

Agencies Delay Methane Rules Opposed by Oil, Gas Industry

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is delaying two Obama-era regulations aimed at restricting harmful methane emissions from oil and gas production. The Environmental Protection Agency said it is seeking a two-year delay for oil and gas companies to follow a new rule requiring them to monit..

North Carolina Rest Stop Closure Extended to Fix Water Line

BURLINGTON, N.C. (AP) — A broken water line means it will take a little longer to reopen the restrooms at a North Carolina rest stop. The N.C. Department of Transportation says in a news release that work crews from the city of Burlington need more time to repair the pipe that provides water to the..