(Reader photo by Erica, July 10th)

Talking to the SDOT team on the Delridge repaving-and-more project for an upcoming update, we got followup information about those two gas leaks/breaks in four days in the northern work zone. Both, SDOT says, were unmapped lines. The first one, at Delridge/Andover on July 10th, was an abandoned/capped half-inch line that was for private property but protruded into the public right of way and incurred a “saddle break” because of the weight of machinery over it. The second, on July 13th at Delridge/Oregon, was an unmarked line broken during excavation. SDOT sat down with PSE to figure out how to prevent any additional problems, so they’ve been “potholing” to check for other shallow surprise utilities, and relocating anything they find. They also changed the design for one project section to increase the distance from one line. Bottom line, SDOT says PSE will be paying for the repairs since the unmapped lines were their responsibility.

SIDE NOTE: If you suspect a gas leak – since natural gas is odorized to prevent it going undetected – call 888-225-5773, or 911.

P.S. The general project update from the rest of our conversation is coming up later.