MISSOURI GAS ENERGY

Incident Narrative

ON FEBRUARY 19, 2013, HEARTLAND MIDWEST, LLC, WAS INSTALLING CABLE NEAR 910 W 48TH STREET, KANSAS CITY, MO FOR TIME WARNER CABLE VIA A VERMEER D9X13 SERIES II HORIZONTAL DIRECTIONAL DRILL WHEN IT TORE A HOLE IN MGE'S TWO-INCH GAS MAIN THAT WAS APPROXIMATELY 38 INCHES DEEP. USIC LOCATING, INC. PERFORMED ONE-CALL LOCATING FOR THE CITY OF KANSAS CITY, MGE AND OTHER UNDERGROUND FACILITY OWNERS. USIC MARKED THE PRESENCE OF ONE UNDERGROUND ELECTRICAL LINE FOR THE STREETLIGHTS AND ONE UNDERGROUND GAS LINE ABOUT A FOOT TO THE SOUTH OF THE ELECTRICAL LINE. HOWEVER, THERE ACTUALLY WERE TWO ELECTRICAL LINES AT THAT LOCATION, NOT ONE, ALONG WITH THE GAS LINE ABOUT A FOOT TO THE SOUTH OF THE TWO ELECTRICAL LINES. HEARTLAND PERSONNEL DUG ONE POTHOLE BETWEEN THE SINGLE RED BROKEN PAINT LINE FOR ONE ELECTRICAL LINE AND THE SINGLE BROKEN YELLOW PAINT LINE FOR THE GAS LINE MARKED ON THE SURFACE AND FOUND TWO CONDUITS. HEARTLAND CONCLUDED THEY HAD EXPOSED THE ELECTRICAL LINE AND THE GAS LINE THAT USIC HAD MARKED. IN REALITY, HEARTLAND HAD EXPOSED TWO ELECTRICAL CONDUITS AND HAD NOT EXPOSED THE GAS MAIN. HEARTLAND THEN DIRECTED THE DRILL TO A DEPTH ABOUT A FOOT BELOW THE CONDUITS AND STRUCK THE GAS MAIN. HEARTLAND FAILED TO EXTEND THE POTHOLE TO THE DEPTH OF THE PLANNED BORE WHERE THE DRILL COULD BE OBSERVED PASSING BELOW THE CONDUITS. THE GAS LINE WAS STRUCK BETWEEN 16:00 AND 16:30, BUT HEARTLAND PERSONNEL DID NOT NOTIFY EMERGENCY PERSONNEL UNTIL THEY CALLED 911 AT 16:54. MGE DISPATCH WAS NOTIFIED AT 16:55. IN REFERENCE TO PART A, QUESTION 16, MGE GAVE EVACUATION ORDERS TO TWO STRUCTURES (906 AND 910 W 48TH STREET) PRIOR TO THE EXPLOSION. THE EXPLOSION AT JJ'S RESTAURANT, 910 W. 48TH STREET, KANSAS CITY, MO, OCCURRED AT 18:02. THE TWO-INCH VALVE AT THE NW CORNER OF 48TH AND ROANOKE WAS CLOSED AT 19:20. THE TWO-INCH GAS MAIN WAS PINCHED OFF AT THE SE CORNER OF 48TH AND BELLEVIEW AT 20:00. AFTER THE GAS FLOW WAS STOPPED, THE GAS MAIN ON 48TH STREET WAS CUT AND CAPPED AT THE NE CORNER OF 48TH AND BELLEVIEW AND JUST WEST OF THE TWO-INCH VALVE AT THE NW CORNER OF 48TH AND ROANOKE. THEN, THE GAS MAIN ON BELLEVIEW WAS RE-ENERGIZED TO ALLOW GAS FLOW TO CUSTOMERS ON BELLEVIEW BETWEEN 48TH AND 47TH STREETS. THE GAS MAIN ON 48TH STREET BETWEEN BELLEVIEW AND ROANOKE IS STILL INACTIVE. ONE FATALITY AND MULTIPLE INJURIES RESULTED, INCLUDING MGE'S FIRST RESPONDER, AND EMPLOYEES OF HEARTLAND AND JJ'S RESTAURANT. THERE WAS SIGNIFICANT PROPERTY DAMAGE, BUT THE TOTAL ESTIMATED PROPERTY DAMAGE IS UNKNOWN AT THIS TIME, IN PART BECAUSE LITIGATION CONTINUES INVOLVING THREE BUILDINGS IN THE VICINITY AND ONE ISSUE IN EACH CASE IS THE EXTENT OF THE DAMAGES RESULTING FROM THE EXPLOSION. MGE HAD SIX EMPLOYEES ON SITE AT THE TIME OF THE EXPLOSION. AS MGE WAS UNABLE TO COMPLETE A FULL INVESTIGATION ON THE NIGHT OF THE INCIDENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER ANY OF ITS ON-SITE EMPLOYEES CONTRIBUTED TO THE INCIDENT, FIVE OF THE SIX EMPLOYEES WERE SENT TO THE HOSPITAL LATER THAT EVENING FOR DOT POST-ACCIDENT DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING. THE HOSPITAL WAS INSTRUCTED TO ADMINISTER DOT POST-ACCIDENT DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING FOR ALL FIVE EMPLOYEES. DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTS WERE ADMINISTERED TO FOUR OF THE EMPLOYEES, WITH NO POSITIVE RESULTS. A DRUG TEST WAS ADMINISTERED TO THE FIFTH EMPLOYEE WITH NO POSITIVE RESULTS. THE HOSPITAL WAS INSTRUCTED TO ADMINISTER AN ALCOHOL TEST TO THE FIFTH EMPLOYEE, BUT DID NOT. THE SIXTH EMPLOYEE, MGE'S FIRST RESPONDER, WAS TESTED FOR ALCOHOL AND DRUGS AFTER THE INCIDENT IN THE COURSE OF THE TREATMENT FOR HIS INJURIES AT ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL, AND THAT THE RESULTS WERE NEGATIVE. MGE DOES NOT BELIEVE ITS EMPLOYEES' PERFORMANCE CONTRIBUTED TO THE INCIDENT.