Exploding Gas In Pennsylvania, Washington, Texas & Steve Doeung's Carter Avenue

Fort Worth's Carter Avenue and the absurdity of running a non-odorized, high pressure natural gas pipeline under occupied homes is fresh on my mind this morning, thanks to Texas Sharon and a gas explosion about 15 miles from where I used to live in Washington.

I don't know what the current status is of the Chesapeake Energy assault on innocent Americans trying live free and pursue happiness on Carter Avenue. I have learned not to believe anything I read about the ongoing Chesapeakegate scandals.

Texas Sharon has a link to a bizarre incident in Pennsylvania. Residents had been reporting foul odors for days to the officials who are supposed to check into foul odors coming from gas drilling operations. But no one bothered to check until the foul odors exploded. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has the whole disturbing story.

I read a story about an incident like the Pennsylvania gas explosion and think how can anyone here, in Texas, not think it unreasonable to stick a non-odorized, high pressure pipeline under homes?

Living here in Texas is the first time I've resided in an energy producing area, of the poke holes in the ground and extract sort. I have lived where humongous dams produce energy. Dams don't create the same problems as hole poking seems to.

I'd totally forgotten, til this morning, that I used to live very close to humongous energy producing facilities in the form of refineries that turn Alaskan crude, brought into Puget Sound in Supertankers, into gasoline and other petro products.

Early this morning, about 12:30am, something called a catalytic reformer naptha hydrotreater unit exploded with a concussive boom that was heard and felt a far distance away. The explosion set off a fire that burned for 2 hours.

The explosion was at the Anacortes Tesoro Refinery. Three workers were killed, four were critically injured.

I believe the Scrabble Queen of Washington's brother works at Tesoro. A lot of people who live in the Skagit Valley work at the refineries.

I have no memory of a deadly explosion occurring at the Skagit refineries before. The refineries have been there for a very long time, as in as far back as my memory goes.

So, again, I really don't think it is unreasonable for Steve Doeung to not want a non-odorized, high pressure natural gas pipeline to run under his house.

What I do think is unreasonable is that the city government of the city Steve lives in, Fort Worth, is in cahoots with the gas drillers who are putting Steve, and others, in harm's way.

In a civilized city, this would be considered criminal behavior on a city's part. In Fort Worth it is just known as "The Fort Worth Way."