‘Good-Sized’ Dents, Train Parts Found Near Gasoline Line Rupture

SAN BERNARDINO —  Several “good-sized” dents were detected by federal investigators Friday near a gaping crack in a gasoline pipeline that ruptured and showered a poor neighborhood here with a fountain of flaming fuel.

National Transportation Safety Board officials also said half a dozen pieces of steel from a Southern Pacific freight train that derailed May 12 were found buried near the fuel line, but it was unclear whether the fragments had caused the dents or perhaps weakened the pipe to the point where it ruptured.

The heavy chunks--none of which was touching the steel pipe--include pieces of a locomotive and a brake assembly from one of the runaway train’s 69 hopper cars, acting transportation board Chairman Jim Kolstad said at a press briefing amid the charred ruins of a fire that killed three people and injured 31 Thursday. The piece of steel closest to the fuel line was discovered about 15 inches away.

One of the dents, which range up to 30 inches long and 4 inches wide, runs directly across the elongated gash that allowed thousands of gallons of gasoline to spew from the underground line.

Although it was not known what caused the 14-inch fuel pipe to explode while under the extreme pressure used to pump gasoline over the steep Cajon Pass grade, Kolstad said the new discoveries raise questions about the adequacy of a safety inspection conducted by the line’s owner, Calnev Pipeline Co., after the derailment.

Indeed, while Calnev officials said Thursday that they had uncovered a block-long stretch of the pipe and checked for damage, they retreated from that position Friday, saying they excavated and only conducted “spot checks” at 50-foot intervals.

“We made two major excavations in areas we felt we might have damage, one where a locomotive had rested and another to the north of there,” said David Andries, manager of operations for Calnev. “We saw absolutely no evidence of damage in those areas.”

Robert Claypoole, president of Calnev’s owner, GATX Terminals Corp., added that the company “took all precautions known to us and common in the industry to ensure this (fuel fire) would not occur.”

The company did not, however, send an X-ray-like device known as a “smart pig” into the pipe to check for weaknesses from the inside. Andries said officials were planning to take such a look but that it required a specialist and took “considerable time to arrange.”

Asked whether the company might consider abandoning or relocating the line given the protests by residents and city leaders, Claypoole said, “This pipeline is strategic, not just to Las Vegas but also to Air Force bases along the way. The product has to move in that direction.”

Tuesday Hearing

Meanwhile Friday, Calnev officials agreed in court not to pump any petroleum products or other hazardous liquids through the pipeline before Tuesday. On that day, a hearing will be held on the city of San Bernardino’s bid for a permanent injunction enjoining the company from pumping through the community.

“The city has a tremendously steep uphill battle before it, but it’s one we will fight because the safety of our citizens is at stake,” City Atty. James Penman said. The fact that the line carries fuel across the state line into Las Vegas, making it an interstate commerce link, constitutes the biggest legal hurdle, Penman said.

The outcome of Tuesday’s hearing is vital, Penman said, because the federal Office of Pipeline Safety, a division of the U.S. Department of Transportation, could authorize Calnev to resume pumping at any time.

The city will argue that an injunction is proper because harm caused by this and any future eruption is irreparable, Penman said.

As authorities prowled amid the blackened carcasses of 15 homes and 18 vehicles engulfed by Thursday’s inferno, residents grappled with the grief caused by the two disasters that have struck their western San Bernardino neighborhood in the space of just 13 days. In all, seven people have been killed and 42 injured and 26 homes have been damaged or destroyed since the runaway train jumped the tracks at a bend alongside Duffy Street.

Evacuees to Return

Evacuees from a quarter-mile-square area surrounding the fire were expected to be allowed to return home today. But few among the estimated 96 families displaced by the blaze seemed eager to do so.

“I don’t know how we can feel safe here again,” said George Liti, 54, whose 9-year-old son, Roy, suffered burns when the blistering fireball sped toward his Mesa Street home. “They told us the gas line was no danger, but you can see for yourself this place looks like a bomb exploded. None of us can ever forget.”

Schools and service organizations were attempting to help shaken families cope with their pain. Cajon High School had 16 students from families whose homes were affected by the fire, five of whom lost their homes entirely. On Thursday night, the school’s student council established a fund to collect donations for victims, Vice Principal George Bohn said.

The school, about 3 miles from the blaze, has seen more than its share of disasters in recent years. In 1980, the deadly Panorama brush fire swept through nearby neighborhoods, engulfing more than 300 homes. And a killer mudslide also wiped out homes occupied by students from the school.

Caswell (Kay) Hayes, a crisis counselor and outreach worker at Cajon High, has been assisting students who suffered losses in the most recent tragedies.

“They are all in shock, gripped by fear,” Hayes said. “Many were crying and trembling yesterday. They couldn’t believe this could happen again. Many still had not been sleeping because of the train wreck. And then to have this hit them. I’m convinced we will see some long-term damage.”

Hayes said that follow-up, professional counseling is vital for students traumatized by the terrifying episodes but expressed concern that their low-income parents would not be able to afford such treatment.

“Most of these people are working people and they have just enough money to live on,” Hayes said. “I hope these kids will get the help they need.”

The San Bernardino County coroner’s office identified one of the victims as Darie Lee Brown, 54, a resident of Duffy Street. Two other bodies are so badly burned that neither their sex nor identities have yet been determined.

The transportation board, which is also investigating the train derailment, will conduct laboratory tests to determine what sort of force caused the pipe to erupt in a geyser and spill more than 12,600 gallons of unleaded gasoline.

“We are removing a (25-foot) section of pipe around the rupture and will be sending a section to Washington to be examined by our metallurgical experts,” said Kolstad, standing in the shadow of homes obliterated by the speeding fireball.

Tests using electron microsopes to magnify sections of the pipe will reveal whether impact from the train or natural forces such as corrosion caused it to rupture.

Of particular interest will be the dents, which officials said are clearly visible on the surface of the pipe and are near the crack, which measures about 30 inches long and is 4 inches across at its widest point.

Also to be studied are the operation of the pipe since pumping resumed May 16 and the extent of the inspection conducted by Calnev. In addition, investigators will examine an “event recorder” from a Southern Pacific freight train that passed about five minutes before the eruption, Kolstad said.

To assist victims of the disaster, checks payable to the Duffy Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to Cajon High School, financial secretary, 1200 Hill Drive, San Bernardino 92407.