Atkins presses for quicker gas line access for public safety officials

By State House News Service

Concord Journal

Posted Mar 04, 2010 @ 12:30 PM

Concord —

A state representative on Wednesday called for local public safety officials to have quick access to gas main controls when a leak occurs.

Rep. Cory Atkins, a Concord Democrat, said that during construction of a new elementary school in her district a problem occurred with one of the gas mains. But the company that owns the gas line is in Framingham and their representatives have to make a lengthy trip to Concord, she told the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy, which is investigating gas leaks and explosions that have occurred around the state.

“Everybody was standing around, wondering if anything was going to blow in the hour and fifteen minutes,” Atkins said. She added: “None of the public safety officials in Concord had access to turnoffs. If it had been a more immediate emergency, there was nothing the officials could do.”

Atkins said when she sought to propose legislation providing local fire chiefs with access to the information, kept confidential by natural gas companies for safety reasons, the fire chiefs were “reticent” because they did not have training available and, because of budget cuts, fewer personnel.Thomas Kiley, president and CEO of the Northeast Gas Association, said his group is working with the state fire marshal on providing information to municipalities on where gas leaks are.

“That is not an easy task to perform,” Kiley said. “It’s a fluid number, it’s a situation that would have to be protected if that information would be provided to municipalities. It is our understanding that some municipalities want nothing to do with that.”

His group represents a number of the local natural gas distribution companies operating in the Bay State.

http://www.wickedlocal.com/concord/town_info/government/x776895239/Atkins-presses-for-quicker-gas-line-access-for-public-safety-officials