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LAWRENCE – Many residents in South Lawrence, Andover and North Andover will have to wait weeks before they can cook or take hot showers, as Columbia Gas announced Sunday it will replace 48 miles of pipelines in the fire communities last week.
The replacement of cast iron and steel pipe is the best way to ensure the safety of the system before putting gas into these communities, said Joe Hamrock, President and Chief Executive Officer of Columbia Power's parent company, NiSource Inc. in Indiana.
The company had planned to put new pipes in place, said Hamrock, but Thursday's incident put undue pressure on these underground arteries and accelerated the need to replace them.
"We are deeply sorry for the devastating impact on the community and how much the incident has disrupted everyday life," Hamrock said. "We are in the race for the long term. It will take time to get back to normal life. "
A Lawrence teenager died and at least 25 people were injured in fires and explosions. Leonel Rondon, 18, was killed when a chimney fell on the car in which he was sitting during one of the explosions.
On Sunday, thousands of families who had returned home after the sudden evacuation on Thursday night were greeted with rotting food in refrigerators, damaged basements and more confusion.
At a former high school Lawrence's claims center, Columbia Gas denied hundreds of residents Sunday to wait for hours to claim damages.
Within hours of opening the Old Lawrence High School's claims center, families seeking help and answers were squeezing into the building and into the street, overwhelming the company's ability to respond to all their needs. needs in one day.
After waiting in some cases until three o'clock in the hot sun, families received a blue ticket and were told to return on Monday.
Many were frustrated by the delays and the lack of answers.
"It's horrible that they did that now," said Richard Cruz, who was told three hours after queuing that he probably would not have a chance to apply on Sunday. Cruz stated that he worked during the week until 18 hours. and will have to come back Monday and stand in line again.
Over the past four days, he has spent more than $ 500 in a hotel, food and gas, and wants to be reimbursed, he said.
Columbia Gas officials should have realized earlier that their claims processing system was inadequate, instead of waiting so long for families, said Renata Rena, a hundred people with her three-year-old daughter .
Many people have lost time, Rena said, instead of cleaning their homes after the damage caused by several days without electricity or gas.
"I'm tired, I'm frustrated," she said.
Representatives of Columbia Gas said they saw more than 570 people on Sunday, but the processing of claims was time-consuming. The company also provided families with gift cards worth $ 100 to $ 300 to manage food and other needs.
The company had about 30 representatives working in the claims center, and plans to double that staff on Monday, said Daniel Ball, a spokesman for the company from Ohio to deal with the situation.
The utility's conduct on Thursday's incident was criticized by Governor Charlie Baker and Lawrence City officials, who were unhappy with Columbia Gas's slow response and vague responses.
Last week, Baker declared the state of emergency and called Eversource, a competing utility, to handle the restoration.
On Sunday, Baker said he heard complaints about long queues.
Baker "expects Columbia to properly handle the claims center to address the concerns raised by residents affected by Thursday's incident," said Sarah Finlaw, Baker's spokesperson.
Mr Hamrock said on Sunday that he regretted the company's poor communications immediately afterwards, but that Columbia Gas employees were focusing on recovery.
We still do not know what triggered the explosions and the flames. The National Transportation Safety Board said on Sunday that gas was flowing into the pipes at much higher than normal rates, but it is unclear why. NTSB investigators discovered Sunday morning that in at least one underground situation, the gas pressure sensors were connected to a pipeline that had been decommissioned and shut down.
Investigators also interview Columbia Gas employees, review utility maintenance and training records, and establish a schedule to identify potential causes and failures.
Hamrock said the utility was cooperating with the NTSB and would take responsibility for the agency's findings.
Everyday life in the affected neighborhoods began to show signs of recovery Sunday. Most of the streets were reopened, electricity was restored, children ran bikes along sidewalks and a resident of Abbott Street in Lawrence smoked a turkey in his garden while grocery stores, lounges hairdresser
Inside their homes, families emptied their refrigerators of rotting food and washed dirty dishes left in a hurry to evacuate.
Yanery Genere, 29, carried a plastic box filled with blankets, dried soups and toy trucks to her Lawrence apartment. She, her one-and-a-half year old son and her mother stayed with two friends at Methuen's home.
An endless list of tasks awaits her in the coming days: she has to clean the fridge, buy new groceries, determine if she should go to work on Monday and find her car, which she left at the repairer's when she heard the first of the explosions on Thursday and ran home. But returning to her apartment was a relief, not only for her, but her son, Francis, continued to ask for his "casa".
"I'm trying to digest what has happened," said Genere.
The sound of the sirens makes her nervous again and she plans to pack a bag of diapers and emergency medicine in case there is another evacuation.
And in Lawrence, parents will have to make arrangements for childcare, as schools in the city will be closed on Mondays, with no word on Tuesdays or the rest of the week.
Jim and Denise Woodhall, owners of J & B Lounge, arrived at the bar at 8:00 am Sunday to begin cleaning. They threw the beer that had spoiled without refrigeration and reheated the water in the microwave to clean the counters.
They planned to reopen the bar, which has been in the family for decades and served the metalworkers and locals in the evening. The beer would be served in plastic cups.
"It's been a long four days," said Jim Woodhall. And the couple still has many unanswered questions, including what they will do about the two units they rent over the bar, which will not have gas for weeks.
Local and local authorities pleaded for patience on Sunday.
Mayor Daniel Rivera of Lawrence said city officials will work with residents to eliminate red tape.
"This is not the time to make sure we have three copies of each document."
Sean Smyth Globe staff contributed to this report. Deirdre Fernandes can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @fernandesglobe.
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