RCMP say gas line explosion near Prince George not criminal in nature

RCMP say gas line explosion near Prince George not criminal in nature
CHEK

Huge fire following an Enbridge gas line rupture near Prince George Tuesday night. Photo courtesy Twitter/Jeff Miller.

Huge fire following an Enbridge gas line rupture near Prince George Tuesday night. Photo courtesy Twitter/Jeff Miller.

The RCMP says there are no indications a gas line explosion Tuesday night in northern B.C. was the result of criminal activity.

Police are investigating the cause of a ruptured Enbridge natural gas pipeline about 15 kilometres northeast of Prince George that caused a huge fire in the small community of Shelley.

The investigation has been turned over the Transportation Safety Board, with help from the National Energy Board (NEB) and Enbridge.

RCMP say there were no injuries or damage reported to properties in the vicinity.

The blast forced the evacuation of about 100 residents of the Lhedli T’enneh First Nation, who police say were allowed to return home within a couple of hours.

Enbridge says the NEB allowed gas to resume flowing Wednesday night through a smaller 30-inch pipeline after confirming it was undamaged by the ruptured 36-inch line.

Fortis BC, which supplies natural gas to more than a million customers in the province, said in a statement Thursday that it is “a positive step to returning our system to normal”, but warns the gas supply is still constrained until the damaged line is fixed.

Customers in B.C. are being asked to turn down the use of natural gas appliances.

Consumers in Washington were also told to restrict their use of natural gas because of the ruptured line near Prince George, but both Puget Sound Energy and Cascade Natural Gas say service has returned to normal.

 

 

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