Where is the gas crisis in the Merrimack Valley now? Here is what we know.

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A recovery process is underway this week after more than 60 fires and at least three explosions in Merrimack Valley homes, serviced by Columbia pipelines, injuring about 25 people and an 18-year-old man. The event has displaced thousands of residents from Andover, Lawrence and North Andover.

People in homes and apartment buildings fled their homes Thursday afternoon as firefighters braved the flames and local authorities cut electricity in the area as they struggled to determine because of the urgency. Leonel Rondon, a Phoenix Charter Academy student, died after a chimney from an exploded home landed on a car in which he was sitting near 35 Chickering Road in Lawrence, according to the District Attorney's Office. Essex.

In total, emergency personnel treated between 60 and 80 structural fires and 150 emergency calls in a matter of hours, state officials said last week, adding that 8,100 to 8,500 gas meters were connected to pressure pipes.

Dissatisfied with the way Columbia Gas handled the immediate stimulus efforts, Governor Charlie Baker declared the state of emergency Friday afternoon and told Eversource the responsibility.

Since then, residents have gradually returned home, but many of them have been without a connection to their home or business. The queues and frustration met those who flocked to a Columbia Gas claim center, seeking help and answers.

"For a lot of people, it's going to take time, and it's going to create real hardship for them," Baker said on Monday. World reports. "I think the wave associated with this is real."

Here's what we know about the crisis from Tuesday afternoon:

How did it happen?

Although state officials have stated that the emergency involved pressurized gas lines, a definitive reason may take some time to investigate.

"The investigation, as I understand it, will not focus on gas end users, but on the distribution system and the origin of the pressure," said Friday Kurt Schwartz, director of Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency. just start.

Nevertheless, in a letter to Columbia Gas and its Indiana-based parent company, NiSource, Inc., US Sens Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey wrote that the pressure in the system was 12 times greater than it was supposed to contain , based on a report from the Federal Administration of Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety.

The pressure in the gas lines should have been about 0.5 pounds per square inch, but at least 6 PSI, according to the letter, which sought answers to questions about society's response to the crisis and information about them. scheduled upgrades of gas lines announced before the start of fires.

"We have requested a hearing at the Senate Commerce Committee on this incident and we hope you cooperate fully and transparently with the federal investigators," the letter said. "We are writing to ask you to provide us with information to help Americans understand why this terrible disaster has occurred, if the society was sufficiently prepared to respond to an incident of this magnitude and how we can avoid any tragedy. similar in the country. to come up."

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which has jurisdiction over the pipelines, said that part of the investigation was focused on gas pressure sensor equipment connected to an off-line pipeline, according to the report. World. The board said Sunday's gas was piped up at a significantly higher speed Thursday, but it was unclear why.

Robert Sumwalt, NTSB President, said Friday's investigators will review Pipeline System design, any upgrades or work-in-progress, Columbia Gas's management system and safety plan, and the response. emergency.

"We are going to look at a few things," said Sumwalt. "Such investigations are very thorough. They take time.

Is the service back to normal?

The short answer: no

While thousands of residents had returned home Sunday and at school reopened This week, many people remained without gas service after technicians and first responders stopped her last week for safety reasons.

The return of the three communities to regular service could take weeks, officials said.

Columbia Gas announced Sunday that it will replace 48 miles of pipeline at Andover, Lawrence and North Andover to ensure the safety of the system before the full restoration of World reports.

"We are deeply sorry for the devastating impact on the community and how much the incident has disrupted everyday life," said Joe Hamrock, President and CEO of NiSource. "We are in the race for the long term. It will take time to get back to normal life. "

The kitchen remains a challenge for many, including local restaurants that have not worked for days.

"I was surprised at everything I had to lose," said John Farrington, owner of Carleen's Coffee Shoppe, in South Lawrence. World Monday.

More than 600 technicians were working in the area on Tuesday, Columbia Gas said on its website.

What politicians say

Warren on Monday posted critics of the company after reports this week showed that many residents were waiting in long queues at a claims center.

"It's unacceptable," Warren's tweet said. "[Columbia Gas] must take real responsibility – and this includes part of overtime work to help the thousands of families who have been affected by #MVgasfires. "

Baker and Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera on Friday made tough remarks about Columbia Gas, saying the company had not reached the 24 hours since the crisis began.

"Along the way, we say it's not a gas problem, it's not an electricity problem or an infrastructure problem, this, what we have, is actually a human problem" said Mr Rivera on Monday. "And so … all along the way, we tried to turn on the light so that people could go home … solve the gas problem so people could be safe."

Tuesday, Baker, Rivera and other state officials and Columbia Gas executives announced that the company was going to donate $ 10 million to the new Grand Lawrence disaster relief fund.

"Obviously, the events of last Thursday shocked everyone in the Merrimack community and in the Grand Lawrence and devastated families and businesses," Baker said at a press conference where the donation was announced. "The houses have been destroyed, the businesses closed. Dear loved ones were injured, displaced and, in a tragic case, we lost the life of a young man, and together, Lawrence, Andover and North Andover slowly start picking up the pieces.

"The recovery process is ongoing," he continued. "People have been able to go home, but there is still a long way to go."

Baker said the creation of the fund, which will be overseen by the Essex County Community Foundation, is one of the ways public servants can respond to the urgent need for humanitarian assistance in the region in the coming weeks.

"We know that it's one of many ways [Columbia Gas is] will assume their corporate responsibility, "said Rivera.

What did Columbia Gas say

Columbia Gas received a reaction from locals and politicians who had sought answers to what had happened.

the World reported last week the company offered its condolences to the people touched in its first statements on its website, but it did not apologize nor insight on what could have triggered the crisis.

Columbia Gas President Steve Bryant said Friday afternoon that the company was sorry and that representatives were meeting regularly with state officials during the recovery process.

Hamrock said on Sunday that the company was cooperating fully with the investigation and was open to total transparency.

"It is heartbreaking to see this devastation and tragedy," he said. "On behalf of the entire NiSource family and Columbia Gas, all of our employees, we all express our sincere regret and commitment to restoring lives here in the Merrimack Valley in the days and weeks ahead.

On Tuesday, Bryant thanked officials and other utility providers who participated in the recovery process.

"This is a remarkable effort to address this tragic event," he said. "I want to acknowledge, recognize that this event has had a profound impact on the community. The citizens of these communities are suffering and, as part of a longer process, Columbia Gas would like to announce that it will make an immediate contribution of $ 10 million to the relief fund.

What do residents say

Renata Rena and her 3-year-old daughter were among the hundreds of residents who lined up at the Columbia Gas Claims Center in the former Lawrence High School.

"I'm tired," said Rena at the World, adding that the system was inadequate. "I'm frustrated."

Business owners have expressed concern about their losses in the days when they were forced to shut down in the absence of electricity and gas services.

"All the meat we've just thrown away," said Juan Polo, the co-owner of two bodegas south of Lawrence. "We have to open, we have to start selling things."

Polo said he had to throw about $ 30,000 worth of food into his stores and estimated at $ 1,200 a day at one of the stores where he sells gas-fueled food.

On Tuesday, the national law firm Morgan & Morgan announced that he had filed a class action on behalf of displaced residents.

Lawrence's Francely Acosta complained that NiSource was negligent because it failed to maintain gas pressure in a "poorly maintained, obsolete, obsolete and extremely dangerous" system, according to Reuters.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for residents and a command for NiSource to make the system safer.

An event organized by Morgan & Morgan is scheduled for Thursday night at Lawrence.

Daniela Taveras, an unmarried mother of Lawrence, told Boston Herald Columnist Jessica Heslam, she took a taxi to her mother's home north of Lawrence so that her children could bathe with hot water.

According to the newspaper, she fears that there will be more explosions when the gas service will be restored.

"It's a very difficult situation. Thank God it's not winter yet. When will it come to winter, will it happen again? Taveras said. "If they put gas in our homes, everyone is afraid to turn on the stove. They will think, "This will happen again. It will explode. "

What happens next?

Complete restoration of the gas service in the three communities will take time.

Baker said Tuesday that the recovery process is in the second of three phases, with crews currently assessing the damage and undertaking mitigation efforts. The next and final step is to make the necessary repairs to the system, he said.

"As we said for a while, it will take several weeks," said Baker.

Teams of technicians inspect the connections of all homes and buildings, according to Columbia Gas.

Baker said the company had opened another claims center Tuesday in Andover and another was scheduled to open Wednesday north of Andover.

He encouraged the public to continue donating to the Emergency Relief Fund through the Essex County Community Foundation, as officials launch the fund in the coming days.

"We continue to believe that there is still a lot of work for everything to be done," Baker said.

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