PACIFIC GAS & ELECTRIC CO

Incident Narrative

ON JULY 26, 2013, AT APPROXIMATELY 1426 HOURS, PG&E WAS NOTIFIED BY CAL FIRE DEPARTMENT OF A STRUCTURE FIRE AT 20189 FOURTH STREET IN HILMAR. DUE TO THE HEAT OF THE FIRE, THE METER AND REGULATOR MELTED. A PG&E GAS SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE (GSR) ARRIVED ON SITE AT 1446 HOURS. AT 1533 HOURS, CAL FIRE DEPARTMENT SHUT OFF GAS AT THE SERVICE VALVE. AFTER THE FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED, PG&E'S GSR REMOVED THE METER SET AND PLUGGED THE GAS SERVICE. THE HOUSE WAS UNOCCUPIED AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT. CAL FIRE DEPARTMENT'S INCIDENT REPORT STATES THAT THE FIRE ORIGINATED IN A 4-FT. BY 4-FT. AREA AROUND THE GAS METER UNDER THE CARPORT. THREE MELTED GARBAGE CANS AND TWO CRACKED WINDOWS WERE OBSERVED IN THE AREA OF FIRE ORIGIN, BUT THE IGNITION SOURCE IS UNDETERMINED. CAL FIRE'S INCIDENT REPORT FURTHER STATES THAT THE FIRE WAS SUSPICIOUS IN NATURE. WITNESSES INDICATED TWO NEIGHBORHOOD YOUTHS WERE SEEN IN THE INCIDENT AREA BEFORE THE FIRE OCCURRED. BOTH WITNESSES NOTED THERE HAD BEEN MULTIPLE ISSUES (INCLUDING THEFT AND VANDALISM) INVOLVING THESE YOUTHS. TO CONFIRM THAT PIPELINE NATURAL GAS WAS NOT THE INITIAL IGNITION SOURCE, PG&E'S GSR PERFORMED BAR-HOLE PROBING WITH A COMBUSTIBLE GAS INSTRUMENT (CGI) ALONG THE SERVICE LINE TO THE MAIN, AND DID NOT DETECT ANY GAS LEAKS IN THE AREA. THERE WERE NO INJURIES AND NO FATALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS INCIDENT. NO MAJOR NEWS MEDIA WAS OBSERVED ONSITE. THIS INCIDENT WAS REPORTED TO THE CPUC AND DOT AFTER IT WAS DETERMINED THAT ESTIMATED DAMAGES WOULD EXCEED $50,000. AS OF JAN. 13, 2015, THE STRUCTURE IS STILL UNINHABITABLE. SERVICE WILL BE RESTORED ONCE STRUCTURE REPAIRS ARE COMPLETE AND NEW SERVICE IS REQUESTED.