Lawmakers Call For Newport Gas Outage Study

NEWPORT, R.I. -- In the weeks following January's weeklong natural gas outage across Newport and Middletown, local lawmakers are calling for a study to determine the cause.

Senators Dawn Euer (D-Newport) and Lou DiPalma (D-Middletown) introduced a bill on January 31 that would require the state Public Utilities Commission, National Grid and Attorney General investigate the outage and report their findings to the Senate by June 4.

RELATED: Opinion: Public Deserves Answers About Cause Of Gas Crisis

Senators James Seveny (D-Bristol, Portsmouth) and Cynthia Coyne (D-Barrington, Bristol, East Providence), along with Senator President Dominick Ruggerio (D-Providence, North Providence) co-sponsored the bill.

The outage affected more than 7,000 National Grid customers in Newport and Middletown for more than a week. Crews were forced to individually address each affected home, manually shutting off gas service before the restoration process could begin. During that time, bitterly cold temperatures forced customers out of their unheated homes and into warming shelters and nearby hotels. Many local businesses were forced to close during the outage, putting thousands out of work and causing major revenue losses.

To help the area recover, Governor Gina Raimondo and the Rhode Island Commerce Department have offered affected businesses loans of up to $25,000 with no interest for six months.

READ MORE:

• Gas Outage Caused Revenue Loss, Food Spoilage At Local Restaurant
• Gas Outage Update: More Than 99 Percent Restored
• National Grid: Gas Restoration Will Take Several Days
• Five Ways To Stay Safe During The Newport Gas Emergency
• Governor Declares State of Emergency in Newport For Gas Outage

Photo: Trucks staged at National Grid headquarters at Newport Grand casino during January's gas outage. Photo Credit: National Grid