September 2010

Questions and answers about the NTSB’s role in investigating the PG&E gas explosion and fire in San Bruno:

Why is the National Transportation Safety Board investigating?

Pipelines are considered modes of transportation because a product (natural gas) travels through them.  Therefore, the NTSB investigates pipeline accidents that involve a fatality. 

Will the NTSB hold the wrongdoer accountable?

No. 

Hearing about the San Bruno explosion brought back memories of another PG&E explosion that killed two, injured three others, and destroyed an apartment building in Santa Rosa.  In fact, the Wall Street Journal even mentioned that explosion in its article discussing the San Bruno blaze.

I spent 4 years prosecuting the case against PG&E on behalf

Underground gas lines can leak because of corrosion, because they were improperly installed, or because they were damaged by a contractor’s backhoe during a street repair project.

A leak may be PG&E’s fault.  Or it may not be.

But it’s always PG&E’s job to find leaks in its equipment.  It is supposed to do this in

I’ve listened to PG&E engineers on the "gas side of the house" try to convince me that natural gas leaks are not really that dangerous. They have argued that you need more than just a leak to end up with a fire or explosion. 

First, they say, you need the proper mixture of gas

A friend heard that PG&E was accepting responsibility for the San Bruno gas explosion. Wrong. They aren’t.  PG&E’s statement is cleverly worded to avoid accepting responsibility until the case against it is proven.  Read it carefully:

If it is ultimately determined that we were responsible for the cause of the incident, we will take accountability.

Once

Red Cross Shelters:

  • Veterans Memorial Recreation Center, 251 City Park Way at Crystal Springs Road, San Bruno
  • San Bruno Senior Center, 1555 Crystal Springs Road, San Bruno
  • Red Cross Receiving Center: Church of the Highlands, 1900 Monterey Drive, San Bruno

San Bruno Emergency Hotline: (650) 616-7180

Legal:

If you have been affected by the

Friday night lights. Marching bands. And the smacking of football pads. Yes, it’s football season!

As parents prepare to watch their kids on the football field, discussion returns to topics of injuries and helmet safety. The risk of football-related brain injurieses is undeniable. Each year designers and manufacturers unveil the latest and greatest helmet. 

A study published in the September 2010 issue of Pediatrics reports the number of sports-related concussions is highest in high school-aged athletes, but the number in younger athletes is significant and rising. Visits to emergency departments for minor traumatic brain injuries occurring during organized team sports have increased dramatically over a 10-year period, and