I remember an oldtimer telling me that he could put a burning match out in a can of gasoline. He said if you moved fast the gas fumes would put out the match before it could reach the liquid because there would not be enough O2 to support the fire. I asked how many times he did this and he said never but the theory was sound. (If you disregard the LEL of natural gas).

Really? Would that be the same as a "little natural gas explosion"?

I, for one, would like to hear from the safety and fire protection people regarding this issue. Seems as though some of our citizens do not have respect for the potential of a broken gas line.

They hit a gas line. At least it only had a few pounds per square inch instead of thousands of pounds per square inch pressure like in the oil field. If it had be set ablaze would not have hurt anyone and would have destroyed the gas before it hurt anyone in the area. They put pipe in the ground and did not mark it and they may not have had access to the xray equipment needed to find unmarked lines. I am with the workers on this one. They did a great job in fixing this leak! My hat goes off to the workers!

If you dig without using the system to prevent damage, injury or death you should not hit a undergound line. There is no reason to endanger lives because you have no idea what is under you. There have been many accidents and deaths caused for this very reason and still some folks just have that "so what" attitude.

Tired. Are you aying thay dug there because they knew there was a gas line?

Hick. These lines are on maps, not blueprints and their location can be varified with current technology "if" you don't want to hit one.

g4. It only take common sense and a regard for your fellowman to be careful. Again, there are many ways of locating lines that will give you depth, size, material of construction and spot leaks. You just have to be responsible before you dig.

I agree, if Jeff williams or vet43 would have been in charge this never would have happened. They would have used thier X-ray vision to scan the earth to see the pipes that were not mapped or buried to shallow.

I am with vet43 on this one.

There is no reason any underground line should be struck when digging. The service provided is to physically locate the underground lines, not look at blueprints. Everyone was lucky on this one but it could have been a major disaster if the gas had ignited.

Victoria Advocate I think you should follow-up and see if the proper procedures were followed as to marking lines before digging.

The Texas one call number is 811 If you plan on digging, make the call and they will issue a one call ticket. Utilities in the area where the digging will take place should mark their lines. This is a free service and there is no excuse not to use the service. If you don't make the call and dig anyway and hit a utility, you could be criminally prosecuted.

Well , vet43, It is not a perfect world after all....... Could of been many things... Blue prints wrong etc....

vet43 - Do you know that the workers didn't check for lines? Maybe they did know where they were.

The brief article doesn't say "why" the lines were struck. Doesn't sound too serious - line damaged after 9:00 and repaired byy 9:50. Everyone's safe and a lesson was likely learned. Good end.

There is no excuse for this happening. Any time you dig you must have the area checked for undergound hazardous lines. There are thousands of miles of pipe full of deadly material. There are hotlines you can call for information before you harm a school full of kids.