Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Northbound Lanes - Closes Fwy Lanes - The Associated Press - Calif

(AP)

SAN MATEO, Calif. (AP) A 2-foot-wide area of water line run hard Sunday during a high-pressure mineral water test across the same Pacific Gas & Electric pipeline inside Northern California that possessed a toxic surge continue year, giving mud, trash and a pipe protect towards Interstate 280 plus shutting affordable parts on the freeway for a variety of hours, authorities said.

The pipe, which often is parked , about three hundred legs using a hill above your the road inside Woodside near San Mateo, seep during about 3:20 p.m. along with saturated your hillside, PG&E Vice President with regard to Gas Engineering along with Operations Kirk Johnson said.

The water line could normally bring normal energy at the force associated with 300 pounds which includes a optimum involving four hundred pounds, Johnson said. Workers were being submitting water by means of that in a pressure with 550 pounds.

Johnson claimed this protected problem were teaching he was glad it was identified during a test.

"We desire to make sure almost any possible some weakness from the pipeline is definitely determined the following way," Johnson said. "In stipulations associated with the exam alone this really is just what exactly we are looking for," he / she said.

The northbound lanes regarding I-280 were banned and also gradually reopened because energy deck hands washed up that mess. All lanes have been open up once again concerning four time later.

The run hard water line was concerning 20 miles south involving that part of pipeline inside San Bruno that exploded within September 2010, killing eight people, hurting a bunch much more plus destroying 38 real estate on Sept. 9, 2010.

Federal investigators in the article written in September blamed the particular great time on the "litany with failures" simply by PG&E and also vulnerable oversight by simply regulators.

National Transportation Safety Board chairwoman Deborah Hersman claimed the actual surge the actual explosion probably the most considerable pipeline accident inside final decade, together due to the destructiveness, and for that protection lapses the idea revealed.

Johnson acknowledged which the tier number 132 seemed to be your same, although downplayed the particular connection, declaring it turned out of a diverse size along with form and a good way away.

"It's different pipe," this individual said.

Since your explosion that power possesses already been completing hydrostatic tests such as Sunday's on one hundred fifty a long way regarding its pipeline.

"The full stage of an examination this way is to make sure these kind of pipelines can operate in a pressure nicely more than exactly what they're designed for," Johnson said.

On Thursday PG&E crews carrying out a hydrostatic test out found a smaller drip about the identical line 132 within Palo Alto.

Gas company had not been impacted because of the run hard given it experienced ended up sent about the pipe to the test.

Johnson explained the actual first set of portion of water line could well be swapped out this kind of few days using expectations connected with doing equivalent tests following weekend.

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