HARRISBURG — Gov. Josh Shapiro has directed the state Department of Environmental Protection to investigate the Saturday home explosion in Plum, adding to an already considerable government effort seeking answers in the blast that killed six people.
A spokesperson, Will Simons, said Mr. Shapiro and his wife, Lori, are continuing “to pray for those who lost their loved ones and will continue to do everything in their power to support the Plum community.”
The Saturday morning explosion on Rustic Ridge Drive is under investigation by the Allegheny County Fire Marshal’s Office and state Public Utility Commission, with other involved agencies including DEP, the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, and the utility Peoples Gas. The cause remains unknown.
The fire marshal’s office has said that it is aware the owners of the home that exploded “were having hot water tank issues” and that information would be part of the investigation.
The Rustic Ridge housing development sits on top of abandoned mine land. Shallow oil and gas wells are nearby, with some still producing and some abandoned. Two producing vertical gas wells are within about 1,000 feet of the home that exploded.
There is also a pipeline that runs behind the development, but none of these structures have been identified as a cause of the blast.
Previously, the PUC said its investigators were interviewing witnesses, coordinating evidence collection and monitoring tests of natural gas lines. The Harrisburg-based agency also said it has been monitoring the restoration of electric service to homes in the area that were not directly impacted by the explosion.
The Shapiro administration said it is encouraging the PUC to carry out “a full investigation into this incident.”
The administration also said DEP staff can conduct stray gas investigations when methane is discovered in or near structures and is not believed to come from a natural gas distribution system. The department, the administration said, will look for any sources of methane near the structure that exploded, such as landfills, sewer lines, active, abandoned, or historic oil or natural gas wells and associated pipelines, and coal mining activities.
The agency will use handheld gas detectors to identify the presence and concentration of methane in the soil or in a structure and, if enough volume of gas is available, may sample the gas to try and analyze it at a laboratory to identify its source, the administration said.
DEP staff are also inspecting unconventional well sites near Rustic Ridge, searching for unregistered wells, and investigating natural gas gathering pipelines in the vicinity.
Those who died from the explosion were Paul Oravitz, 56; his wife, Heather Oravitz, 51; Kevin Sebunia, 55; Michael Thomas, 57; Casey Clontz, 38, and his son, Keegan Clontz, 12.
Ford Turner: fturner@post-gazette.com
First Published: August 17, 2023, 10:11 p.m.
Updated: August 18, 2023, 4:43 p.m.