Investigation: Gas Flow Line May Have Been Cut During Sewer Work
FIRESTONE, Colo. (CBS4)- A preliminary investigation has revealed that a gas flow line may have been cut during a sewer installation that later led to a home explosion in Firestone last month that killed two people.
The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission emphasized the finding is not final involving the April 17 blast.
The new information comes after homeowners in the neighborhood attended a meeting the night before during which an official from Anadarko, the oil and gas company that owns the nearby production facilities spoke.
The neighbors were told three wells in the subdivision are being permanently shut down although that was not necessary.
FIRESTONE GAS EXPLOSION: Timeline Of Events
The company is also funding explosive gas detection equipment for those who request it. At that meeting the homeowners were also notified that a ground survey had discovered a different methane pocket nearby. That pocket is being vented.
Neighbors like Matthew Wilkerson expressed dismay at that news asking, "What's next, another pocket here, another there."
The home where Mark Martinez and Joey Irwin died remains a charred mess. The home next door remains unoccupied; those residents have yet to return.
CBS4's Rick Sallinger is a Peabody award winning reporter who has been with the station more than two decades doing hard news and investigative reporting. Follow him on Twitter @ricksallinger.
