CHARLESTON —
A federal investigator probing a powerful explosion and fire Tuesday that charred Interstate 77 in West Virginia said Friday that a ruptured natural gas pipe had areas consistent with external corrosion.
National Transportation Safety Board member Robert Sumwalt said the pipe will undergo further analysis at an NTSB lab.
“That’s exactly what we want to find out — what caused that corrosion and what could have prevented the corrosion?” Sumwalt said.
The NTSB is trying to determine the cause of Tuesday’s explosion in Sissonville, which destroyed four homes and damaged a large swath of I-77. There were no serious injuries.
Sumwalt said investigators have been provided Columbia Gas Transmission records about the pipe’s age, when it was installed and whether it had a corrosion prevention system.
“Now what we need to do is to comb through those records, very carefully look at them and then compare them to actually what the pipeline was,” he said.
During an investigation into a 2010 deadly pipeline explosion in San Bruno, Calif., the NTSB found that PG&E records were inaccurate on key points.
“What they told us what was in the ground was not actually what was in the ground,” Sumwalt said. “So even though we’ve been provided those (Columbia Gas Transmission) records, we need to verify that.”
Investigators have said alarms didn’t sound at Columbia Gas Transmission’s Charleston control room during the explosion.
A Columbia Gas control room worker first learned about the accident from another company, Sumwalt said. The worker received a call 10 minutes after the blast from a controller at Cabot Gas, who had been contacted by someone on the outside.
The NTSB plans to interview the Cabot Gas employee and attempt to locate the outside caller, Sumwalt said.
Earlier Friday, Columbia Gas Transmission chief executive Jimmy Staton released an open letter to the community saying the company is committed to helping investigators pinpoint the cause of the explosion and ensure the pipeline is safe.
West Virginia
Feds: Ruptured pipe may have been corroded
- West Virginia
-
-
Waiver eliminates ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach
West Virginia won limited freedom Monday from the federal education law known as No Child Left Behind, gaining approval of its own method for identifying struggling schools and then devoting resources to improve them.
-
W.Va. gets reprieve from No Child Left Behind law
West Virginia has won some limited freedom from the federal education law known as No Child Left Behind.
-
Big decision looms for W.Va. House
West Virginia’s House of Delegates faces a momentous decision after Speaker Rick Thompson departs for Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s Cabinet: Choosing a new leader will help set the stage for 2014, when Republicans aim to wipe out the Democrats’ ebbing majority.
-
Coin commemorates W.Va.’s 150th birthday
West Virginia is adding a commemorative coin to the celebratory mix for its 150th birthday, the commission overseeing the sesquicentennial activities announced Saturday.
-
Record trout caught in Berkeley County
The Division of Natural Resources says a record rainbow trout was caught in Berkeley County.
DNR director Frank Jezioro says the trout was caught by Tony Corbin of Gerrardstown on May 2 from a private pond. -
West Virginia House speaker to step down, take Cabinet position
House Speaker Richard Thompson will resign from the West Virginia Legislature next month to join Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s Cabinet as secretary of Veterans Assistance, the governor announced Thursday.
-
Transcript: Teenagers planned friend’s death
Transcripts of a secret plea hearing show a teenager involved in the 2012 stabbing death of a Star City girl planned the slaying with an accomplice. But their motive remains unclear.
-
Teacher in ‘bad kid fort’ incident has been rehired
A Wood County teacher who put a box labeled “bad kid fort” around a special-needs student will return to the classroom in the fall.
-
Consol will restart Blacksville mine Monday
Consol Energy says it’s got federal approval to restart its sprawling Blacksville No. 2 coal mine with the morning shift on Monday.
-
W.Va. House speaker taking Cabinet post
House Speaker Richard Thompson will step down from the West Virginia Legislature to join Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s Cabinet as secretary of Veterans Assistance, government sources told The Associated Press on Thursday.
- More West Virginia Headlines
-
Waiver eliminates ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach
