The Rice Thresher

Location: http://the.ricethresher.org/news/2007/11/30/gas_leak_duncan

November 30, 2007 > News > Construction springs leak in gas line near Duncan

Construction springs leak in gas line near Duncan

By Sarah Rutledge | Thresher Editorial Staff

A gas leak occurred near the sites for Duncan and McMurtry Colleges Tuesday, Nov. 20. While Linbeck subcontractors were working, a clump of dirt fell on an old gas pipe and bent it, stripping the threads and causing a gas leak. The construction team called Rice University Police Department, Houston Fire Department and the Department of Health and Environmental Safety. Environmental Safety monitored the air around the leak and shut off the air intake at Duncan Hall until the line was shut off two hours later at 2:15 p.m.

Facilities, Engineering and Planning External Project Manager Ed Bailey said the gas pipe served Lovett Hall in the past and is around 50 years old. Bailey said the construction team has been working around the pipe, which was left underground even though Lovett Hall quit using gas. He said the steel covering of the pipe caused it to split apart rather than break entirely. Since no source of ignition was present, the gas dispersed quickly without putting the area in danger of explosions.

Bailey said Martel College Coordinator Maria Byrne and Associate Dean of Engineering Bart Sinclair have been added to the emergency contact list and that people in the buildings close to the work site will be advised immediately of potentially dangerous situations.

End of article

Back to top