The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, March 25, 1994, Image 10

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    Page 10
The Battalion
Friday, March 25, Wl
It's Here!
V
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OfrZ
N.J. natural gas pipeline explodes;
levels apartments, injures dozens
Friday,
The Associated Press
BEACH BAR & GRILL
^0
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■ EDISON, N.J. — First came the
roar, then a reddish-orange glow like
the sun was shining in the middle of
the night. As the names leaped I 00
feet into the air, barefoot pajama-clad
residents fled for their lives.
On Thursday, teams of rescue
workers and dogs scoured the
bombed-out neighborhood for possi
ble victims of the natural gas explo
sion that leveled eight apartment
buildings and sparked an inferno visi
ble in three states.
The blast left at least 250 people
homeless. Nearly 500 people sought
shelter at a Red Cross evacuation cen
ter at the township’s high school.
Just one fatality was reported.
About 40 of the 250 people living in
the destroyed buildings had not been
accounted for by late afternoon.
"All of a sudden I heard a
WHOOSH!” evacuee John Gallagher
said. “It was like the sun was shining
in the middle of the night. I just got
my wife and myself and we just ran
out with what we had on, in our un
derwear.”
Witnesses described a deafening
roar as the pipeline ruptured, and
the gas blasted out of the hole and
caught fire. The flames shot more
than 100 feet into the night sky
like a huge blowtorch.
Within minutes the intense heat
ignited buildings, cars and almost
anything else within its reach.
“The roaring sound, it was un
believable,” said 67-year-old Al
bert Warshawsky, who jumped
from his second-story patio with
his wife and son.
“We just got out really by the
skin of our teeth. ... I was going to
get my car, and my kid put a bear
hug on me and that was the end of
that." The car burned moments
later.
A 32-year-old woman living at
the apartment complex died of a
heart attack, said Arthur Cifelli, chief
of staff to Edison Mayor George
Spadoro.
Hospital officials reported at least
1 00 people injured. The cause of the
blast was unknown. Local and feder
al officials were investigating.
The 36-inch-diameter pipeline
was one of three owned by Texas
Eastern Transmission of Houston
that run through Middlesex County
carrying natural gas to New Jersey
utilities, said company official Tom
Wooden. He said the carbon steel
pipe had been installed in 1961.
The pipeline was about 300 yards
from the complex.
Texas Eastern officials said the
“It was like the s
was shining in
middle of the night
-John Gallagk
evacua
line had been thoroughly inspecit
in 1986 and regular maintemm
had not revealed any problems.
Township officials said mo!:
than 1,5 00 people lived atij.
Durham Woods Apartments, aboi
60 two -and three-story buildinj
with up to 16 apartments pi:
structure. Eight buildings, wii;
128 apartments, burned totti
ground and several others wtn
damaged.
Those closest to the pipeli®
had only minutes to flee. Firefwti
ers could get no closer than wit)
3,000 feet of the flames, whitl
could be seen up to 30 miles aw!
in New York City, Trenton anil'
Bucks County, Pa.
"It sounded like three
were revving up their engines,
Jim Nemeth said. "I ran outandi
I saw was red. It was like daylijli
I thought we had been bombed
Lunch &
Dinner
11:30 A.M.-1 A.M.
Happy Hour
4:00 - 7:00
Pipelines safest way to transport gas, industry says
The Associated Press
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Call 779-7325
HOUSTON — Industry and government officials
say there is no safer way to transport energy than
through the nation’s vast network of underground
pipelines — despite a pipeline explosion Thursday
that leveled eight apartment buildings in New Jersey.
Some 1.7 million miles of pipeline carry oil, gas
and other fuels around the nation, according to the
U.S. Department of Transportation. Over the past
decade, the federal agency says, there have been about
30 pipeline-related deaths, compared with hundreds
for other such modes of transportation as rail and
truck.
“Considering the miles of pipeline we have in the
United States, it's still by far the safest form of trans
portation,” DOT spokeswoman Pat Klinger said.
The section of line that ruptured and exploded near
Edison, N.J., was inspected by DOT officials in 1987
and 1 992 and found to be in good shape, she said.
Houston-based Texas Eastern Transmission Corp.,
which operates the 36-inch line, said it had thorough
ly inspected the section in 1986.
“It’s gotten a lot of attention over the last seven
years. Two inspections from the feds as well as tk
own inspection team that we monitor,” Klingersaid
She and officials in the natural gas industry sail
E ipeline ruptures rarely are caused by mechanicaldi
;cts.
"Most accidents like this are caused by third-pan
damage to the line” such as unauthorized digging
said Julie Stewart, a spokeswoman for the Americai
Gas Association.
Texas Eastern spokesman Stewart Lawrence sai
there was no immediate indication of what could hasi
caused the explosion, which killed at least one persoi
and destroyed the eight apartment buildings.
He said the Texas-to-New York line, built in
undergoes aerial examinations and other checks mad
dition to the more thorough inspections.
Texas Eastern was involved in several natural
pipeline explosions in the mid-1980s, all of whit!
were blamed on the company.
In 1984, a Texas Eastern natural gas line ruptured
and exploded near Jackson, La., killing five people ant
injuring 23.
An NTSB report faulted the company for failing t«
properly install the 30-inch pipeline.
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Resurrection Week Speakers
Jay Carty, a former L.A. Laker, is the founder
of Yes! Ministries. He is a gifted communicator
with a great sense of humor who speaks all
over the country. He is also the author of sev
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Fire:Do Nice People Really Go To Hell?
Rudder Auditorium-Free
Steve Camp is an accomplished Christian
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Heaven by Storm, is currently in the Top 20 for
contemporary Christian music. His hit single,
”He is Able” reached number one on the charts.
Rudder Auditorium—$3
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Drayton McLane is a very successful
Christian businessman from Temple, Texas.
He is the owner of the Houston Astros and the
vice-chairman of Walmart. He was named
entrepreneur of the year by A&M school of
business this year. Beverages provided.
MSC 292—Free
Tom Landry, one of the winningest coaches
in the history of the NFL, led the Dallas
Cowboys to two Super Bowl victories over his
twenty-nine year football career. He will be
sharing how God has influenced his life.
Rudder Auditorium—Free
Dan Korem is a world-class illusionist and
investigative journalist and author of several
landmark texts on magic and illusion. He uses
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Rudder Auditorium—$3
Jon Randles, who will follow Landry on
Wednesday night, is a dynamic speaker who
loves college students. He is now a travelling
speaker and is working on his Ph.D. in Ancient
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with local churches. Rudder Auditorium-Free
Laura Kates, a former LSD cheerleader, is a
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Frank Cox, Class of ’65 former Head Yell
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All events are ticketed, and tickets are available at the Rudder Box Office (845-1234). For more
information, call the Resurrection Week Hotline 693-1829.