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Globe Staff
LAWRENCE – Faced with frustration in the Merrimack Valley, Governor Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency on Friday and called another utility to respond to the series of gas explosions and fires that killed thousands of people.
Baker, faced with growing indignation from residents of Lawrence, Andover and North Andover, criticized the fact that Columbia Gas, the electricity company that supplied gas to dozens of homes destroyed, had reacted to the disaster and placed Eversource in charge.
"We think it will make a big difference in the relationship between what is being said to us and what is really happening on the ground, and the representations made to people in these three communities, so that we can do everything we can to make sure their homes and communities are safe, "Baker said at a press conference.
Lawrence Mayor Daniel Rivera said it more clearly.
"Since yesterday – since yesterday – when we heard about this incident, the least informed and the last to act were Columbia Gas," said Rivera, next to the governor. Columbia Gas had a chance to respond to the fires, "and they spent it and wasted it".
Stephen Bryant, president and chief operating officer of Columbia Gas, on Friday expressed his "heartfelt and sincere condolences" to the family of Leonel Rondon, the 18-year-old killed by a chimney. he collapsed on the car in which he was sitting while defending his company's performance.
Bryant said the company had 107 contractors and 189 field employees, and another 100 were expected from Columbia's subsidiaries in Pennsylvania and Ohio.
"In general, I would say that we have progressed as quickly as possible," he said at a press conference. "I do not think anyone could have handled that would have gone further than us right now."
The governor's statement came as the National Transportation Safety Board arrived in the Lawrence area to begin investigating the cause of the fires. Hundreds of public servants and utility workers started going from house to house to turn off the gas meters and carry out security checks.
About 8,600 homes and businesses in the three affected communities were evacuated after fires and explosions hit the area Thursday afternoon, causing fear, confusion and traffic jams overnight.
Up to 80 buildings burned. The Lawrence General Hospital reported treating 13 victims with injuries ranging from smoke inhalation to blast trauma. One person remained hospitalized and underwent surgery on Friday.
Authorities said they thought the fires and explosions may have been caused by overpressurized gas lines, but warned that the investigation was just beginning. Columbia Gas, which serves approximately 50,000 customers in the Merrimack Valley, said it was upgrading equipment in the area when explosions and fires erupted.
"Our mission is to discover what has happened so that we can learn from it and prevent it from happening again," said Robert Sumwalt, NTSB President. "We are conducting a security investigation. We are not here to point fingers and blame.
On Friday, schools in all three communities were closed, fires were extinguished and streets were strangely silent, while law enforcement teams, assisted by locksmiths, entered empty homes to allow anyone to return. . There was no estimate of the time required for the authorities to clean up the thousands of affected buildings before residents were allowed to return.
The lack of clear information enraged residents of the entire region, some of whom were staying in shelters and were still under fire and explosion.
At North Andover's First & Main Marketplace, two Columbia Gas representatives who arrived late for a briefing for residents returned to their car when they were full of questions they could not answer.
"I do not know if we can move into our house or not. Is it safe? Said Chris Allen, a resident of Belmont Street.
"I really think you should have come here with more information," said James Hassam, a retired firefighter.
"We have no answers yet," said a representative, who did not want to give his name.
"So you say it's not safe to go home?" Asked another person.
Hassam said he is appalled by the company's inability to help his clients.
"When you come here and try to get answers they do not have, it's disturbing," he said.
At first, Baker had described Columbia Gas's response to the disaster as "adequate," but as the company's anger rose throughout the day, he blamed the utility of not keeping his word.
"On a number of very important issues, we heard one thing and something else happened," Baker said Friday afternoon.
Rivera told the press conference that Columbia Gas had asked him to evacuate everyone in South Lawrence, and then ask him to cut off electricity.
"So we did it," he said. "These are the last two consistent pieces of information we have received from Columbia Gas. Since then everything has been obscured.
Mr. Bryant indicated that Columbia Gas has set up a customer complaint hotline at 1-800-590-5571.
"We are sorry and deeply concerned about the inconvenience," said Bryant. "It's the kind of thing that a gas distribution company hopes will never happen."
On Jefferson Street in Lawrence, Christel Nazario, who lives in front of the house destroyed by a fire, said she was delighted to hear that Columbia was no longer there.
"They created this problem," she said. "To our knowledge, they did that. A young child lost his life because of them.
Senators Edward J. Markey and Elizabeth Warren, who visited a command center in Lawrence on Friday, urged Congress to hold a hearing on the disaster, saying the Columbia Gas authorities and officials must explain "how this incident is taking place." Is produced and the types of dangerous accidents do not happen again.
They pointed out that Columbia Gas was responsible for an explosion in 2012 at an adult entertainment club in Springfield, in which 18 people were injured. This explosion was blamed on a worker who punctured a gas line while searching for a leak. Columbia Gas has agreed to pay the Town of Springfield a settlement of $ 850,000.
Robert J. Chipkevich, a retired National Transportation Safety Officer who led the 15-year pipeline accident investigation program, said he was struck by the large number of fires in the area. buildings in such a vast area.
He said that if overpressure was to blame, it could have been caused by a human error – somebody opening a valve – or a mechanical failure on a control valve.
He stated that once additional pressure enters a pipeline, it can quickly flood homes through the system with flammable gases, which can then be ignited by a nightlight on a stove, water heater or an electric spark from a switch. He said investigators will have to work methodically to find the problem at its source.
Rivera, speaking in Spanish and English at a press conference, sought to reassure undocumented immigrants worried about the wave of state and federal agents who react to the news. gas explosion.
"Stay in the light; we will support you, "he said. "Lawrence is a community and we will stay that way."
Rivera also told Lawrence residents not to suspect racial discrimination when they saw the residents of the richer, whiter communities of North Andover and Andover return home. Rivera said it may simply take longer to keep Lawrence safe because of its density, large population and older housing stock.
"It's a lot more complicated job," Rivera said. "We deserve a different strategy."
On Jefferson Street in Lawrence, neighbors were wary of a home that suffered catastrophic damage from a fire, a smell of persistent smoke in the air.
"It's so sad about what happened here," said Ricardo Favian, who lives nearby. He stayed home Thursday night, but wondered how the people of Lawrence could feel safe when the power was restored.
"When will they make the gas, will it be safe?", He asked. "It will be hard to feel safe."
Jacklin McKenzie of Methuen was visiting her grandparents in nearby Hamlet Street when she heard the massive explosion on Thursday night and then saw black smoke spread around the corner.
"I do not even know how to describe how loud the noise was," she said.
Laura Crimaldi, Victoria McGrane, Martin Finucane and Andy Rosen of the Globe team contributed to this report.
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