Columbia Gas To Check Over 400 More Andover Gas Lines

ANDOVER, MA — Columbia Gas will be doing compliance checks on 427 more abandoned gas service lines in Andover, in addition to 173 lines announced in September, the company told the town Monday. While the original set of checks are almost complete, only a six percent of the new ones are done. Columbia Gas said this is to respond to the latest sets of orders from the Department of Public Utilities, issued after last month's gas leak in Lawrence.

The order demanded that "By October 7, 2019, Columbia Gas shall submit a detailed work plan to the Department describing how it intends to address the estimated 2,200 locations, at which an inside meter set was moved outside the property as part of the abandoned service work completed during the Merrimack Valley restoration." Columbia Gas said it is not aware of any safety concerns with those sites.

The checks will not interrupt gas service, as they only concern abandoned service lines, according to Columbia Gas.

You can see if your address will be checked here.

According to the town's announcement, "Columbia Gas has been reaching out to residents at the affected addresses to schedule appointments seven days per week. This work will include Columbia Gas officials entering the property to perform the compliance check. If after three unsuccessful attempts to reach the customer and leaving a door hanger, the compliance check may be done from the soft surface, sidewalk, or street. "

The announcement adds that compliance checks will delay paving of certain streets, including those that have already been milled to prepare for paving.

It continues: "Columbia Gas has prioritized the compliance work on these streets in order for paving to proceed. Those streets include: Argyle, Arundel, Balmoral, Burnham, Carrisbrooke, Cassimere, Dufton, School and York."

The compliance checks, ordered Oct. 2, ultimately result from the gas explosions over a year ago that killed one, injured more than 20 and damaged or destroyed more than 130 buildings in the Merrimack Valley.

Christopher Huffaker: 412-263-1724 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.