PG&E Crews Begin to Dig Up Abandoned Section of Line 132

At the request of the California Public Utilities Commission as part of its investigation into the Sept. 9, 2010, pipeline explosion, PG&E crews today began removing an abandoned section of Line 132 from the Crestmoor neighborhood.

Crews will be excavating the pipe at two locations—near Claremont and Glenview drives, and near Claremont Drive and Earl Avenue—and the work is expected to take place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. over two to three days, according to Pacific Gas & Electric Co.

The 250-foot-long pipe segment was originally laid underground in 1948, but it was decommissioned in 1956 when Line 132 was relocated to the Crestmoor neighborhood, said PG&E spokeswoman Brittany Chord.

It is not part of the segment of Line 132 that exploded Sept. 9 and left eight people dead, dozens injured, 38 homes destroyed and 62 other homes damaged. Chord wouldn't go into detail about the purpose of the excavation work.

"We're doing work at the CPUC's request," she said.

The excavation work begins a day after the city held a community meeting Wednesday (meeting presentation attached) to give residents an update about the reconstruction project being planned for the Crestmoor neighborhood, where streets, utilities and sidewalks have been left the same nearly a year after the blast.

The city is expected to begin rebuilding the infrastructure in the fall and continue the work over four phases that will end in summer 2012 with a new park and a dedication ceremony for the memorial set to be established in remembrance of the disaster.

Meanwhile, the 72-foot-long and 26-foot-wide crater left by the blast near Glenview Drive and Earl Avenue still sits fenced off in the middle of the neighborhood as a constant reminder of the gaping hole left in the hearts and minds of the residents affected by the fire. The crater has been left open while the National Transportation Safety Board continues its investigation into the blast.

According to the San Mateo County Times, City Manager Connie Jackson said the hole left by the crater will be filled in by early August.