OXFORD, CT — U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal and U.S. Rep. Jim Himes are asking federal regulators to investigate the equipment failures behind a July natural gas release that woke residents across three towns.
In an Oct. 2 letter to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, the lawmakers called for steps to prevent another incident and public access to the findings.
"They were never formally notified that these noises were due to the malfunction at the compressor station," Blumenthal and Himes wrote.
The letter follows Patch's earlier coverage of the July 12 release, based on reporting by Connecticut Public. The outlet reported that more than 35 million cubic feet of gas escaped from the Oxford station in less than an hour, citing federal incident records.
Connecticut Public reported that a loose connection triggered an emergency shutdown, but a valve failed to close completely. Gas continued escaping for about 53 minutes before workers manually closed the valve. The noise woke residents in Oxford, Middlebury and Naugatuck.
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Middlebury resident ShawnaLee Kwashnak questioned the lack of information afterward.
"It should be transparent and there should actually be an apology," she told Connecticut Public.
Enbridge, which owns the pipeline, told the outlet that "at no time was there a threat to public safety."
Connecticut Public also reported that Sierra Club Connecticut wants nearby residents notified about gas releases and information about the amounts made public.
Blumenthal and Himes raised similar concerns in their letter, saying residents were not told how much gas had been released or whether they needed to take health precautions. They asked regulators to examine both equipment failures and keep residents informed.
The lawmakers' announcement requests an investigation; it does not say that the agency has opened one or reached findings.
For more Northern Connecticut news, follow Patch editor Jay Kenney.
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