Economic Impact Of Merrimack Valley Gas Fires Hard To Measure

LAWRENCE, MA -- Paula Germain stocked the fridge at the Lawrence rooming house where she lives following a trip to the grocery store Thursday morning. By Saturday, after two days without power, she was throwing out the food. And on Monday morning, she was up bright and early in hopes of getting reimbursed for the $70 she spent on the spoiled food.

Officials haven't place a total estimate on the cost of Thursday's gas explosions, but the expenses are clearly mounting. Germain's groceries are just a tiny fraction of the tens of millions of dollars in direct costs incurred as a result of the explosions, which forced thousands to evacuate Lawrence, Andover and North Andover. There are also the costs for paying emergency and utility workers who were on duty throughout the weekend. And the indirect costs -- including lost economic activity for businesses that had to remain closed for the weekend and the personal days off from jobs that had to be taken to evacuate -- multiply the total.

Germain and her neighbor, Stephen LaChance, were just two of the hundreds of people expected to line up at the temporary Property Claims Center at the Lawrence Public Library where people could file claims for reimbursement for damage and costs associated with having to evacuate. When Germain and LaChance arrived at the library at 7 am on Monday, there were already 75 people in front of them in line. By 8 am -- two hours before the center was scheduled to open -- another 150 were waiting behind them.

"I didn't know about it until last night -- when the power came back on I saw it on the news," LaChance said. "I just wasn't prepared for this -- I didn't have candles, flashlights -- nothing. And I had no way to keep the food cold."

Columbia Gas will reimburse residents who had to evacuate for "reasonable accommodations" and food during the time they were evacuated. People can request reimbursement by visiting the claims center or by contacting the utility's Property Claims Helpline at 800-590-5571. Keep track of your receipts and expenses so you can be reimbursed.

The claims center is scheduled to be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday until further notice. The center processed more than 500 claims on Sunday but turned away hundreds of other people when it closed for the day. Residents lined up early Monday morning to file claims for expenses ranging from hotel costs to child care to lost wages.

LaChance and Germain stayed at the rooming house on South Union Street all weekend, choosing not to evacuate or go to a shelter. While the restoration of power service was welcome, the uncertainty of when gas service would be restored was daunting. Officials say it could take weeks. LaChance and Germain said they took turns heating water on a hot plate to clean dishes, as the rooming house's kitchen stove runs on gas.

"I've never experienced anything like it," Germain said.

The lingering questions have raised tensions. On Monday, the street in front of the Library was blocked off by Lawrence fire trucks and state and local police were stationed there to maintain order. Lawrence Police also assigned additional officers at the Columbia Gas resource center over concerns about rioting. The Red Cross, Salvation Army and other relief organizations continue to staff a Recovery Resource Center at the Arlington Middle School at 150 Arlington Street in Lawrence for residents of all three communities.

On Chickering Road in Lawrence on Monday morning, an insurance adjuster shot video of the wreckage of one of the first of more than 60 homes damaged or destroyed on Thursday. It was also the home where 18-year-old Leonel Rondon was killed when the chimney toppled onto the car he was sitting in next to the house.

Part of the National Transportation Safety Board investigation will focus on why some houses, like the one on Chickering Road, exploded, while others merely caught on fire.

A neighbor -- clearly tired after a weekend spent dealing with officials, emergency vehicles and gawkers who refused to heed the yellow police tape blocking off the street -- yelled at the insurance adjuster and a City of Lawrence building inspector. "You're not supposed to be here," she said.

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Top: People line up to file claims with Columbia Gas at the Lawrence Public Library on Monday. Photo by Dave Copeland/Patch.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).