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PG&E Natural Gas Operation Honored, But Critics Say Pipeline System Remains Unsafe

PG&E Natural Gas Operation Honored, But Critics Say Pipeline System Remains Unsafe

By George Avalos, The Oakland Tribune

SAN BRUNO, California—PG&E on Tuesday announced it has received two international certifications for being a best-in-class operator of a natural gas system—but San Bruno city officials quickly denounced the certifications, saying the utility continues to operate unsafe gas pipelines in California.

The debate over the safety of PG&E’s system was the latest event in the aftermath of the 2010 natural gas pipeline explosion in San Bruno that killed eight people, injured 66 and destroyed 38 homes.

San Francisco-based PG&E said it received what it called prestigious certifications from Lloyd’s Register, an England-based organization that conducts engineering and operations audits in the utility, energy, rail and maritime industry. PG&E requested the certification and paid for the audit, utility spokeswoman Debbie Felix said Tuesday.

“These certifications are by no means the end, they are part of our process of improvement,” Christopher Johns, president of Pacific Gas & Electric, the utility operation of PG&E, said during a conference call. “We are doing the right work, and we are doing it the right way.”

Lloyd’s Register traveled throughout the 70,000-mile PG&E natural gas system earlier this year and conducted a series of independent audits and interviews as part of the certification process.

“This is not to say PG&E is perfect,” said Peter Glaholm, manager of energy utilities for Lloyd’s Register. “We will continue to push them.”

Despite the certifications, PG&E still is plagued by faulty record-keeping and other deficiencies that pose problems for the utility’s gas system, said Connie Jackson, San Bruno city manager.

“We remain concerned that the natural gas system is not adequately safe and that what happened in San Bruno could potentially happen again,” Jackson said.

The state Public Utilities Commission is considering whether to impose a fine that could top $2 billion to punish PG&E for the negligence that contributed to the fatal explosion. Separately, federal prosecutors seek to convict PG&E on criminal felony charges stemming from the blast.

“We are not going to get into some sort of public debate about the certifications,” Johns said in response to a question from this newspaper. “Obviously the San Bruno event was a tragedy. We are sorry for that. I would hope that we are all focused on how do we make the system as safe as it can be, and to take a look at the work we are doing.”

Photo: Ron Fletcher via Flickr

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San Francisco: Massive Fire Causes Catastrophic Damage In Mission Bay

San Francisco: Massive Fire Causes Catastrophic Damage In Mission Bay

By Katie Nelson, San Jose Mercury News

SAN FRANCISCO — A huge, out-of-control fire caused catastrophic damage to a quarter-billion-dollar apartment complex under construction at Fourth Street near China Basin in San Francisco on Tuesday evening, according to the San Francisco Fire Department.

The massive blaze broke out shortly after 5 p.m., spreading through the building quickly and sending embers floating toward nearby buildings as fire crews worked to contain the blaze. Shortly before 6 p.m., one side of the building collapsed, and a fire dispatcher with the department confirmed the structure was collapsing internally.

“Everybody is heading there,” the dispatcher said. “We don’t go past five alarms in this city.”

The fire appeared to totally destroy MB360, a $227 million apartment complex being developed by San Francisco-based BRE Properties Inc. The project was slated to open sometime later this year.

Representatives for the development company were not available for comment.

There were no reports of injuries as of 7 p.m. Fire crews pulled back from the building around 6 p.m. to stay clear of possibly spreading flames or collapsing walls.

While initial reports suggested high winds may have played a factor in the spread of the smoke and flames, the National Weather Service said downtown San Francisco experienced wind speeds of no more than 10 mph Tuesday, and that heavy winds were not expected Tuesday night.

In a news conference at 6:30 p.m., San Francisco fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said crews were anywhere from 90 minutes to a few hours from getting the blaze under control.

“Seeing white smoke is a good sign,” she said. “We’re getting the upper hand on it.”

For South Bay residents, reports of the fire brought back memories of a six-acre fire at Santana Row in San Jose, Calif., in August 2002. The upscale mall was still under construction when it erupted in a monstrous blaze and tested the city’s fire department emergency response system.

The fire became the worst in San Jose’s history, and the department — forced for the first time to seek help from outside Santa Clara County — called in more than 200 firefighters and 70 trucks, engines and other vehicles from San Jose and 11 other departments.

The smoke and flames caused more than $100 million in damage to the shopping center site. Falling embers that ignited roofs half a mile away destroyed more than 30 apartments and townhouses in a nearby neighborhood, resulting in $2.5 million in damage.

Fire officials were never able to determine how the blaze started, but they noted that large construction sites are vulnerable to catastrophic fires before sprinkler systems, drywall and other fireproofing are added to protect the wooden framing.

Ethan Weiss, an associate professor in the cardiology department at the University of California at San Francisco, said he was unaware of Tuesday’s fire until someone yelled at him from another office to look out his window.

“It is literally to the left of my computer,” Weiss said as he and some colleagues were heading to a faculty dinner across town. “It’s just ash and water now. The building is a shell. It’s gone.

“It’s amazing. When this started, it looked like firefighters had things under control. And then it just went nuts.”

Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group/MCT