HomeMy WebLinkAboutINS-13-078 - Natural Gas Inspection - Laurentian West Community Follow-Up
REPORT TO:
Community & Infrastructure Services Committee
DATE OF MEETING:
November 18, 2013
SUBMITTED BY:
Wally Malcolm, Director of Utilities, 519-741-2600 x4538
PREPARED BY: Wally Malcolm, Director of Utilities, 519-741-2600 x4538
WARD(S) INVOLVED:
5
DATE OF REPORT:
November 3, 2013
REPORT NO.: INS-13-078
SUBJECT: NATURAL GAS INSPECTION – LAURENTIAN WEST
COMMUNITY FOLLOW-UP
RECOMMENDATION:
Information Only
BACKGROUND:
An explosion and fire destroyed a two-storey home on January 27, 2013. On Wednesday,
February 27, 2013, the Kitchener Fire Department, Kitchener Utilities and the City of Kitchener
Building Division shared up-to-date details regarding the incident during a community open
house held at W.T. Townshend School. On May 6, 2013, a staff report was presented to the
Community & Infrastructure Services Committee which recommended staff to proceed with a
gas site inspection program for those residents closely impacted by the incident. Regarding the
investigation of the January 27 incident, all of the inspections that have been completed have
ruled out any concerns regarding the land and the gas service to the house. The Ontario Fire
Marshal’s investigation is ongoing.
REPORT:
Kitchener Utilities and the City of Kitchener are committed to our customers and residents – and
customer safety is important to us. The gas site inspection program was intended to dispel
questions about the natural gas service and to offer homeowners an opportunity to have their
questions answered. 750 residents, closely impacted by the incident on January 27, 2013,
received a letter offering a free inspection of their gas service. To ensure consistency in testing,
the gas detection equipment used in the inspection program was the same equipment used at
the investigation site.
Of the 750 eligible residents, 300 requested a free inspection of their gas service. From the 300
homes inspected, 161 leaks were found, but the majority of the leaks were minor in nature.
Typical fixes required were re-tightening of connections, re-applying pipe sealant to the pipe
connections as well as repairs such as re-flaring connections to gas fired appliances. Non-
compliant infractions resulted in 11 of the leaks found. Of these 11 infractions, 2 required
Kitchener Utilities to shut off the gas to the property until the infractions were corrected by a
.
qualified gas technician for the home ownerAn additional 5 infractions were issued due to non-
It is important to note that in regard to all the leaks
compliances not related to gas leaks.
noted, the concentration of gas in the air was low enough not to create a flash of fire in
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presence of an ignition source (arc, flame, heat). In other words, none of the leaks
detected were at a harmful level.
As part of the inspection service, technicians advised homeowners of their responsibility to
maintain their gas-fired appliances and explained the importance of having certified TSSA
technicians do annual maintenance and inspections of all gas-fired appliances. During these
discussions, only a few indicated that they had maintenance service completed on the natural
gas fired appliances since moving into their homes. The majority of the residents indicated that
the maintenance service was not done either because they were not aware that it is their
responsibility, or, quite simply, the major roadblock was the costs of having a service technician
complete an annual maintenance inspection.
ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN:
The gas site inspection program aligns with the strategic foundation of effective and efficient
government – communications and customer service. Good customer service, within the
corporation, responds to the changing needs and expectations of stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
The cost to complete the inspections, by a third party contractor, and to complete the repairs to
the minor leaks found during the inspections, by Kitchener Utilities staff, was $22,005.
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COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
For this campaign, 750 letters were sent to all residents eligible for the free inspection.
Residents, within the identified area, were provided two options to register for the inspection
program: online web access and telephone. If a resident was not home during the scheduled
visit, a door hanger was left with contact information in regard to rescheduling the visit to their
home. For residents who did not pre-book an appointment or decided later they wanted an
inspection to be completed at their home, a date was set aside to complete these inspections.
Kitchener Utilities takes pride in being Kitchener’s community-owned natural gas utility and is
committed to giving back to the community and keeping customer’s concerns top of mind.
During the Fall 2013, Kitchener Utilities, with support from the Kitchener Fire Department and
Kitchener-Wilmot Hydro, has completed the following outreach programs related to natural gas
safety:
- Kitchener Rangers Game Night, October 4;
- Home Hardware, October 5, 6; 26, 27
- Kitchener Market, October 12;
- Home Depot, October 19, 20
Other partnership opportunities include the annual firefighter memorial event on October 19 with
Kitchener Fire Department and the Halloween event at the Children’s Safety Village on October
26 with Kitchener Leaf Collection.
Upcoming campaigns include a “Scratch ‘n Sniff” Natural Gas bill insert, Carbon Monoxide and
Regular Maintenance bill insert, and ongoing advertising campaigns in Your Kitchener, Natural
Comforts and with local media.
Going beyond industry standards, Kitchener Utilities also does an annual natural gas leak
survey program throughout the city. This program involves checking 1/3 of the utility’s
distribution system for natural gas leaks, resulting in the entire city being checked over the 3-
year cycle. As well, Kitchener Utilities also does a yearly inspection on all public buildings.
CONCLUSION:
The gas site inspection program was well received by the residents. Given the incident on
January 27, 2013, the residents appreciated the opportunity to have their gas service, inside
their homes, checked for any potential issues. Also, the residents appreciated being able to
discuss natural gas safety as well as the importance of having their gas appliances inspected on
an annual basis. This inspection campaign also enabled Kitchener Utilities to further expand
and strengthen its partnership with Kitchener Fire for gas safety messages to the greater
community.
ACKNOWLEDGED BY:
Pauline Houston, Deputy CAO , Infrastructure Services
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