By Scott Lewis
Backhoe busts pipe, causing gas leak
A subcontractor digging up curbs along Shore Road on Wednesday, October 4 accidentally ruptured a high-pressure gas main with his backhoe, spouting natural gas six feet into the air and causing neighboring houses to be evacuated.
The Long Beach Fire Department received the alarm call at 12:02 P.M. and arrived at the scene, in front of 270 Shore Road, two minutes later. The leak sprayed natural gas fumes for over an hour while the LBFD and the Long Beach Police Department evacuated houses in the near vicinity and set up roadblocks to prevent access to all four corner roads between Long Beach Road and Monroe Boulevard along Shore Road.
Keyspan, the lone gas company in Long Island, arrived shortly after the fire and police departments and contained the leak by shutting off the valves. Thanks to ideal weather conditions and quick response time, the LBFD declared the scene secure at 1:36 P.M.
"Anytime you get a gas leak, it's an extremely hazardous situation," said Chris DeFillippo, commanding officer of the LBFD. "We were lucky that it wasn't a hot, muggy day. You get those type of conditions and that type of leak, then it's a bad problem."
Fearing that the gas would build up and cause an explosion before Keyspan would arrive, the LBFD used a fire hose to shower the cloudy mist spewing from the busted pipe. According to Commanding Officer DeFillippo, the combination of the spraying and the slight afternoon wind helped break up the gas particles.
"Natural gas has a way of lingering in low places," Mr. DeFillippo said. "When you don't have a wind, the gas concentration is solid. If you don't have anything to break it up, an explosion is going to break it up. The wind off the ocean was blowing 5-10 miles an hour; with the breeze, it breaks [the gas] up and dissipates it into the atmosphere and the risk of explosion isn't as bad.
"Being that the conditions were right, I don't think any of the surrounding structures were in grave danger."
A Keyspan spokesperson, Bonnie Habyan, told The Herald that the hole in the gas main was one-quarter inch, and that two valves had to be shut down to stop the leak. Twelve services, including five apartment buildings, were interrupted, Ms. Habyan said.
"We don't like to see any leaks, and as a company, of course we want to make sure our customers are always safe, but as we did this time, we will always respond quickly to ensure our customers safety," Ms. Habyan said.
Neither Keyspan nor the LBFD knows the name of the subcontractor responsible for the leak, nor do they know who hired the subcontractor.
There were no injuries or illnesses reported, but the booming sound of a leaking high-pressure natural-gas main was enough to rattle even the steeliest nerves.
"It's very loud," Mr. DeFillippo said. "It sounds like a jet engine. You can't even hear yourself talk."
