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City by the Lake.org, The Voice of Michigan City, Indiana _ City Talk _ Gas lines cut near Joy School
Posted by: southsider2k9 Nov 12 2009, 09:09 AM
http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=26965
QUOTE
Gas lines cut near Joy School
Alicia Ebaugh
Staff Writer
MICHIGAN CITY - Traffic was snarled around Joy Elementary School for several hours Tuesday when repairs had to be made to two gas lines that were accidentally cut along Coolspring Avenue.
NIPSCO spokesman Nick Meyer said a contractor working on the Coolspring Avenue construction project first sliced through a 2-inch gas line around 10 a.m. Shortly afterward, when NIPSCO crews were there to shut off service to that main, the contractor's equipment cut through a 6-inch gas main nearby.
Police were called out to direct traffic around the repairs.
Joy students were not sent home, but they did stay inside for the rest of the day while repair work was being done, said Betsy Kohn, director of communications for Michigan City Area Schools.
"NIPSCO and the fire deparment came out to do air quality tests, and there was not determined to be a risk," she said.
Parents were asked to pick up their children in the schools' Transportation Services parking lot, a short walk from the school, Kohn said, and all afternoon activities were canceled at Joy due to traffic concerns. Everything should be back to normal when school resumes Thursday.
NIPSCO received dozens of phone calls from concerned residents about the smell of gas in the air throughout the day, as far out as Marquette Mall, Meyer said.
Its not uncommon to hear of gas lines accidently being cut during construction projects, he said.
"A lot of times construction companies are working with large equipment in exposed areas and it's difficult to maneuver," Meyer said.
Although Meyer didn't know if the contractor had called beforehand to check where underground pipes were located, he said anyone who digs underground for any kind of project is encouraged to check with the city or call 811, a national hotline, 48 hours beforehand to determine where gas, water and sewer lines are.
Gas service was shut off to Joy school and three other customers in the area until late Tuesday to make sure everyone was safe while the problem is fixed, Meyer said.
Alicia Ebaugh
Staff Writer
MICHIGAN CITY - Traffic was snarled around Joy Elementary School for several hours Tuesday when repairs had to be made to two gas lines that were accidentally cut along Coolspring Avenue.
NIPSCO spokesman Nick Meyer said a contractor working on the Coolspring Avenue construction project first sliced through a 2-inch gas line around 10 a.m. Shortly afterward, when NIPSCO crews were there to shut off service to that main, the contractor's equipment cut through a 6-inch gas main nearby.
Police were called out to direct traffic around the repairs.
Joy students were not sent home, but they did stay inside for the rest of the day while repair work was being done, said Betsy Kohn, director of communications for Michigan City Area Schools.
"NIPSCO and the fire deparment came out to do air quality tests, and there was not determined to be a risk," she said.
Parents were asked to pick up their children in the schools' Transportation Services parking lot, a short walk from the school, Kohn said, and all afternoon activities were canceled at Joy due to traffic concerns. Everything should be back to normal when school resumes Thursday.
NIPSCO received dozens of phone calls from concerned residents about the smell of gas in the air throughout the day, as far out as Marquette Mall, Meyer said.
Its not uncommon to hear of gas lines accidently being cut during construction projects, he said.
"A lot of times construction companies are working with large equipment in exposed areas and it's difficult to maneuver," Meyer said.
Although Meyer didn't know if the contractor had called beforehand to check where underground pipes were located, he said anyone who digs underground for any kind of project is encouraged to check with the city or call 811, a national hotline, 48 hours beforehand to determine where gas, water and sewer lines are.
Gas service was shut off to Joy school and three other customers in the area until late Tuesday to make sure everyone was safe while the problem is fixed, Meyer said.
Posted by: Homey Nov 12 2009, 01:51 PM
The smell was horrendous...
Posted by: southsider2k9 Nov 12 2009, 02:13 PM
Our kids were supposed to get their Swine Flu shots, but the Medical Group got shutdown.
Posted by: southyards Nov 12 2009, 04:32 PM
QUOTE(Homey @ Nov 12 2009, 01:51 PM) 
The smell was horrendous...
Actually, it's meant to smell that way. . . . . . . .pure natural gas is odorless. For domestic use, that nefarious odor is added so a leak can be detected.
Posted by: Homey Nov 12 2009, 05:16 PM
Duh, yes, I realized that at the time 
Just sayin', the whole neighborhood smelled for hours!
Posted by: southyards Nov 13 2009, 01:20 AM
QUOTE(Homey @ Nov 12 2009, 05:16 PM)
Duh, yes, I realized that at the time
Just sayin', the whole neighborhood smelled for hours!
A number of years ago, I worked for a scrap yard on highway 12 & one morning the whole neighborhood smelled like natural gas. They evacuated our place and three other surrounding businesses until the leak was found. Turns out that someone had scrapped a small cylinder of the natural gas odor additive without making sure it was empty. A little bit of that stuff went a very long way.
Posted by: TSNSPYDER Nov 17 2009, 10:24 AM
It probably still didn't smell as bad as Gary.
I remember when I was a kid. You'd drive the highway to Gary, go under the over pass, and at that moment you knew you were in Gary city limits.
Sorry to be off topic, but is that smell still in Gary?
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