The Latest: Colorado checks gas lines after fatal explosion
The Latest on a fatal house explosion in northern Colorado (all times local):
6:05 p.m.
Colorado's chief oil and gas regulator says the state doesn't have a complete record of all gas lines in the state like the one blamed for a fatal home explosion.
Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission Director Matt Lepore said Tuesday operators are required to tell regulators the planned route of the pipelines that carry gas from a well to storage tanks or other collection points. But he says the state doesn't have a record of all the lines ever installed.
An April 17 explosion in the town of Firestone killed two people. Investigators blame the explosion on gas that leaked from an old, unused pipeline that was still connected to a nearby well. Officials say they don't know why the line remained connected to the well.
Lepore says unused pipelines are supposed to be disconnected and sealed at both ends and all flammable gas should be removed.
Gov. John Hickenlooper on Tuesday ordered inspections of all active and unused natural gas pipelines near occupied buildings.
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5 p.m.
The owner of a gas well near the site of a fatal Colorado home explosion says it is cooperating with investigators after fire officials blamed the explosion on odorless, unrefined gas leaking from a pipeline connected to the well.
Anadarko Petroleum said Tuesday the company wants to ensure that "no stone is left unturned" before investigators reach final conclusions.
The April 17 explosion killed two people in the town of Firestone.
Earlier Tuesday, investigators said the gas had leaked from a cut in a small pipeline that was thought to be abandoned but remained connected to the well. Investigators say they don't know how the line was cut or why it remained connected to the well.
Although Anadarko owns the well, investigators say they don't know who was responsible for the abandoned line. The well was drilled in 1993 and had other owners before Anadarko.
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4 p.m.
Colorado's governor has ordered inspections of all active and abandoned natural gas pipelines near occupied buildings after investigators determined a leaking line caused a home explosion that killed two people.
Gov. John Hickenlooper also says the state will investigate whether anyone broke the law in connection with the April 17 explosion in the town of Firestone.
Investigators said Tuesday the explosion was caused by odorless, unrefined natural gas leaking from a small pipeline that was considered abandoned but remained connected to a nearby well.
Officials say the gas seeped through the ground and into the home's basement.
The well has been shut down. Officials say they don't believe any neighboring homes are in danger.
The well is owned by Anadarko Petroleum but had other owners in the past. Investigators say they don't yet know who was responsible for the abandoned line.
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2:50 p.m.
Fire officials say a fatal house explosion in northern Colorado was caused by unrefined natural gas that was leaking from a small abandoned pipeline from a nearby well.
Ted Poszywak, chief of the Frederick-Firestone fire department, said Tuesday the April 17 explosion in Firestone that killed two people and left another badly burned happened when the odorless gas in the old line, which had been cut, leaked into the soil and made its way into the home's basement.
Investigators do not know how or when the small pipe was cut. The house was within 200 feet (60 meters) of the well, and the pipeline was buried about 7 feet (2.1 meters) underground.
The well was drilled in 1993, and the house and others nearby were built later.
Firestone is about 30 miles (48.2 kilometers) north of Denver.
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10:50 a.m.
Firefighters are planning to discuss their investigation into a fatal house explosion near a gas well in Colorado.
Investigators scheduled a news conference for Tuesday on the April 17 explosion in Firestone that killed two people and left another badly burned.
The house was within 200 feet (60 meters) of a well, but investigators haven't yet said whether the well was involved.
State regulators planned to test the soil for evidence of underground leaks from the well but haven't released the results.
The well was drilled in 1993 and the house and others nearby were built later.
The state regulates the distance between new wells and existing homes, but local governments control how close new houses can be built to existing wells. In Firestone, the requirement is 150 feet.