National Grid blames BT for gas explosion

National Grid is blaming dodgy building work by BT for a gas explosion in Shrewsbury that injured 12 people, according to a report. The BBC said it has seen legal correspondence from National Grid's solicitors that names the cause of a crack in a gas main at a town centre junction as a concrete "chamber", constructed on top by …

[N2]

Go National Grid

Give BT a good old shafting, right up the concrete chambers

[Grease Monkey]

Chamber

Why have you put the word chamber in quotation marks?

[Anonymous Coward]

Avoidance...

... of the word "concrete" - "National Grid have provided no substantive evidence"

[Oliver Mayes]

Much as I hate to defend BT

Wouldn't any construction work like this require planning permission or something similar? If so then wouldn't whomever authorised the construction be at fault here? Or is that BT as well, in which case go ahead and sue BT for all they're worth.

[Russell Howe]

Planning Permission

Is a minefield. BT probably have an exemption for "critical infrastructure" works, etc.

They don't need PP for installing telegraph poles and roadside cabinets AFAIK, or for digging holes and burying things. This may be affected by things like conservation areas, etc, but by and large I would expect them to be exempt.

I don't know if the rules have changed but it used to be that mobile phone operators had the same kind of exemption for masts - they had to notify the local planning authority, but they couldn't really object to it.

[Disco-Legend-Zeke]

Doesn't GB Have Some Kind...

...of BlueStake program?

Nothing scarier than a bunch of Suits in hard hats looking down a hole.

[Fluffykins]

I don't see why comments from national Grid are a problem for BT

BT could just delete any unfavorable comments and ignore anything else nat Grid says - a bit like they do over comments about Webwise (ptah) and Phorm (Gretch)

[Barrycudasuck]

Reputation managment fails

BT normally trawl forums doing their utmost to remove negative comments. Simple facts with BT. You are dealing with penny pinching, lazy morons. It's almost certain any manhole chamber was built by a third party contractor for the lowest possible fee.

That said, and for all their ills, it's unlikely they would be negligent to this extent. How about National Grid moleploughed that main in forcing it under the chamber when they struck an obstruction?

Just a thought......

[Dave Higgin]

title req

Its highly unlikely that chamber was there when the main was put in, and also unlikely it was moleploughed in place, it would have been a trench job. The main is metallic and that means its been there for some time.

One who knows these things hence AC

[Anonymous Coward]

good idea

nice one dave...keeping it on the QT...i hear ya!