CONSOLIDATED EDISON CO OF NEW YORK

Incident Narrative

ON 1/18/22 AT 11:10, CON EDISON'S GERC RECEIVED A REPORT FROM THE FDNY OF AN ACTIVE BUILDING FIRE AND EXPLOSION AT 850 FOX STREET IN THE BRONX, WITH FDNY PERSONNEL ON LOCATION. NATURAL GAS WAS NOT REPORTED TO BE INVOLVED. CON EDISON GDS, GAS CONSTRUCTION, AND GAS ERG AND SUPERVISION WERE DISPATCHED TO THE LOCATION BY THE GERC. CON EDISON GAS ENGINEERING WAS NOTIFIED AND DEVELOPED AN ISOLATION PLAN INVOLVING CLOSURE OF DISTRIBUTION MAIN VALVE (MV) 94461 AND EXCAVATION OF A FIRE BANK AT INTERVALE AVENUE AND FOX STREET, OVER A 4-INCH LPPE GAS MAIN (INSTALLED IN 1988). CON EDISON GAS CONTROL WAS NOTIFIED AND REPORTED NORMAL OPERATING CONDITIONS AT NEARBY GAS REGULATOR STATION GR-128. AT 11:19, GDS ARRIVED AND BEGAN INVESTIGATING. GDS CORRECTED THE ADDRESS TO 869 FOX STREET AND CONFIRMED THAT A BUILDING EXPLOSION HAD OCCURRED AT THAT LOCATION. GDS ALSO REPORTED HAVING NO ACCESS TO THE HOS VALVE OR OUTDOOR METER SET AT 869 FOX STREET, WHICH IS SUPPLIED BY A 1 1/4-INCH LPPE GAS SERVICE LINE (INSTALLED IN 1986). GERC PROVIDED GDS WITH THE LOCATION OF MV 94461 (AT THE INTERSECTION OF TIFFANY STREET & FOX STREET). AT 11:48, GDS CLOSED MV 94461 TO BEGIN ISOLATING AND SHUTTING DOWN THE GAS MAIN. CON EDISON GAS CONSTRUCTION CREWS ARRIVED AND BEGAN EXCAVATING A FIRE BANK OVER THE 4-INCH LPPE GAS MAIN AT THE SOUTHEAST CORNER OF INTERVALE AVENUE AND FOX STREET. GDS CONDUCTED A SPECIAL SURVEY OF THE AREA AND DID NOT DETECT ANY NATURAL GAS LEAKS OR ODORS. ALL SUBSURFACE STRUCTURES AND TEST POINTS CHECKED DURING THE SPECIAL SURVEY WERE FOUND CLEAR OF NATURAL GAS READINGS. THE SPECIAL SURVEY WAS CONDUCTED WHILE THE GAS MAIN AND SERVICE LINES ON THE BLOCK WERE IN SERVICE AND BEFORE THEY WERE SHUT DOWN. GDS ALSO TOOK PRESSURE AND ODORANT READINGS AT 858 FOX STREET; BOTH WERE WITHIN ACCEPTABLE RANGE (7.9 INCHES WC FOR PRESSURE; 0.29% GAS-IN-AIR FOR ODORANT). AT 13:03, CON EDISON GAS CONSTRUCTION CREWS INSTALLED A SQUEEZE-OFF ON THE 4-INCH LPPE GAS MAIN IN THE FIRE BANK EXCAVATION, SHUTTING DOWN THE MAIN AND INTERRUPTING GAS SERVICE TO 18 SINGLE-FAMILY BUILDINGS. GAS CONSTRUCTION CREWS THEN CUT AND CAPPED THE SERVICE LINES SUPPLYING 865, 867 AND 869 FOX STREET. AT 18:48, GDS OPENED MV 94461, REINTRODUCING GAS INTO THE MAIN UP TO THE SQUEEZE-OFF. GDS CONDUCTED A DP-IR SURVEY OVER THE MAIN AND SERVICES LINES AND DID NOT DETECT ANY LEAKS. AT 19:08, GDS REMOVED THE SQUEEZE-OFF AND PERFORMED AN ADDITIONAL DP-IR SURVEY OF THE MAIN AND SERVICE LINES WITHOUT DETECTING ANY LEAKS. RESTORATION WAS COMPLETED AT 20:52. ON 1/18/22 AT 17:40, NYPD ARSON AND EXPLOSION SQUAD DETECTIVE DIMARE REPORTED THAT THE SOURCE OF THE EXPLOSION WAS UNKNOWN AND UNDER INVESTIGATION. ON 1/19/22 AT 10:39, FDNY CHIEF SAROCCO REPORTED THAT NATURAL GAS WAS BELIEVED TO BE INVOLVED WITH THE EXPLOSION. THERE IS, HOWEVER, NO INDICATION OF CON EDISON JURISDICTIONAL PIPING BEING INVOLVED AT THIS TIME. THIS INCIDENT REMAINS UNDER INVESTIGATION BY THE FDNY AND NYPD. THE EXPLOSION RESULTED IN TEN INJURIES AND ONE FATALITY, AND GREATER THAN $50,000 IN PROPERTY DAMAGE. PHSMA, DPS STAFF, AND NYCDEP WERE NOTIFIED AND UPDATED. NTSB INQUIRED AND WAS UPDATED. MEDIA WAS ON LOCATION.