Initial reports indicate Columbia Gas lines not involved in Sewickley Heights explosion

Columbia Gas lines do not appear to have been involved in the Dec. 12 cottage explosion in Sewickley Heights, the state Public Utility Commission said Friday.

Pipeline safety engineers from the PUC are investigating the incident which injured one person and destroyed a structure at 543 Backbone Road.

“At this point in the investigation, no evidence has been discovered to indicate an unintentional release of gas from Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania, Inc.’s facilities,” according to the report.

Emergency crews responded to the explosion just before 5:30 p.m.

A plumber who was working in the estate’s cottage was taken to a hospital and treated for injuries, according to Aleppo Fire Chief Bill Davis Jr.

While the cottage was destroyed, the main house on the property, a 7,000-square-foot mansion that sits about 500 feet away, was not affected, Davis said.

The homeowners, inside the mansion at the time of the explosion, were not hurt.

The Allegheny County Fire Marshal’s Office continues to investigate.

The PUC’s safety engineers began gathering information while the emergency response was active. They spoke with responders, utility workers and neighbors, and continue to do so, according to Friday’s report.

On the night of the explosion, Columbia Gas crews shut off gas to the home as a precaution. Neighboring residences were not impacted, Columbia spokesman Lee Gierczynski said.

Columbia had no technicians working at the residence, nor were any crews working in the Sewickley Heights area at that time, Gierczynski said.

Columbia Gas performed a survey with no gas leaks detected, and no other concerns were discovered during the integrity testing of jurisdictional gas facilities, according to the PUC.

Safety engineers will continue to work with the county fire marshal to review and gather evidence.