Page 18 - Texas811

Cities and Municipalities Role in Right-of-Way Construction Management
Josh Flud
Construction Services Manager City of Lubbock
and Damage Prevention
Iwas recently at a state conference regarding damage prevention when the statement was made “Is damage prevention a public safety matter or a public relations matter”. My first and vocal reaction was “Of course it is a public safety matter”, anyone who has ever been or worked through a damaged utility incident knows the potential hazards of the situation. The first thing that most people react to is gas line strikes, but let’s start with some of the less publicized line strikes.
Electric line strikes and the risk of connecting a wet steel drill steam with high voltage electricity. Not only the danger to human life but damages to electric lines transformers upstream of the strike. The inconvenience to citizens and customers of power loss and the cost of perishable goods and manpower to repair and restore electric services.
Telecommunication although most of the public have cell phones nowadays days the older population still relies
on landlines. Back when landlines were copper wire to the house, they could be repaired in a relatively short time frame. With the massive fiber builds the country is seeing and the time-consuming repair of splicing glass
tubes communication to emergency services could and most likely will
be out for several hours if not days.
So much of the population receives emergency information by fiber in some form or fashion not to mention the entire 911 system runs through fiber. Most business relies on fiber for card transactions, supply chain, and countless other needs, and man-hours, and equipment to repair the fiber are expensive and time-consuming.
There is no doubt that gas line strikes are dangerous situations. The instant the gas line is struck the air fuel
ration is optimal for ignition. New polylines are prone to static electric charge and when cut can create a spark. When gas lines are damaged
in a confined situation, for example, directional boring the gas finds old ditch line to travel down. Cities and Municipalities used clay tile pipe in
the early construction of wastewater collection systems. The joints of this type of pipe are not airtight and the lack of soil compaction around the
pipe makes the wastewater collection system extremely vulnerable for natural gas to infatuate and move up the line. Service taps create an exit point for the gas to travel up the service line and
collect in structures. This is why every damaged gas line response procedure must include removing manhole lids on both sides of the strike as well
as monitoring structures for natural gas. Gas venting into the atmosphere can travel several blocks exposing citizens to all levels of explosive hazards. Evacuation of businesses and homes, the fear that citizens have of the paternal loss of their home and business is unmeasurable. Loss of revenue to businesses due to evacuation or customers simply not able to access the business due to roads being closed, not to mention the massive problem
if a school or hospital is within the vacation area. Gas line response procedures now involve local fire and police departments to respond to any release of hazardous material. The deployment of fire and police personnel and equipment is costly to taxpayers and ties up resources for an unknown amount of time.
All Cities and Municipalities operate water and wastewater systems in some form or another. The damage to water lines causes loss of water outages whether residential or commercial properties. Water outage is both an inconvenience and a health hazard
16 • Texas811 2024, Issue 2