No evidence of public natural gas equipment as cause of deadly Plum house explosion, PUC says

PLUM, Pa. — The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) Safety Division concluded its investigation into the August 2023 deadly house explosion in Plum.

On August 12, 2023, a house on Rustic Ridge Drive exploded, killing six people and injuring others, as well as destroying three homes and damaging at least a dozen more.

PHOTOS: House explosion in Plum Borough

Tuesday, the PUC Safety Division concluded that there was no evidence that linked public utility jurisdictional assets to the cause of the explosion and fire.

>> New video shows moment house exploded in Plum Borough

“While the PUC’s portion of the investigation has concluded, the Commission recognizes and deeply appreciates the profound level of concern this incident has generated within the community and our hearts go out to everyone impacted by this tragic event. The PUC remains steadfast in our commitment to public safety and our Safety Division experts are available as a resource to the Allegheny County Fire Marshal and other investigators who continue examining the cause of the Rustic Ridge Drive incident,” the report said.

57 firefighters were treated at the scene of the explosion due to “minor issues.” They were treated at the scene and then went back to work.

While firefighting and recovery efforts were still active at the scene, investigators from the Safety Division began gathering information from residents, responders, and utilities around that location. Following the conclusion of fire and rescue activities, safety engineers worked with other state and local agencies who also responded to the incident – including the Allegheny County Fire Marshal, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Peoples Natural Gas (Peoples Gas) and other entities involved in the response to this incident.

>> Fire marshal considers Plum house explosion accidental, DA says

Immediately following the incident, the Safety Division required field and laboratory testing of Peoples Gas service lines and other pertinent jurisdictional facilities and monitored integrity tests of nearby public utility natural gas service lines by crews from Peoples Gas.

The PUC safety team also conducted detailed interviews with utility employees, first responders and residents and collected and reviewed extensive data from Peoples Gas and monitored the safe restoration of electric and natural gas service to homes in the area that were not directly impacted by the explosion, the report said.

>> Peoples Gas president says system was ‘operating as designed’ at site of Plum house explosion

Additionally, engineers from the Safety Division assisted the fire marshal with the investigation of oil company assets near the explosion site and worked in conjunction with PA DEP to investigate other potential gas sources.

“The Safety Division appreciates the cooperation of Plum Borough, the Allegheny County Fire Marshal’s Office, local fire and rescue personnel, the Department of Environmental Protection, and other agencies who responded to this incident. We also extend our gratitude to the residents and others impacted by this incident for their cooperation and patience during the investigation. The PUC remains committed to ensuring public safety and will continue to serve as a resource for the ongoing investigation being conducted by local officials,” the report said.

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