California gas pipeline explosion injures at least 14 in California
Xinhua, April 18, 2015 Adjust font size:
A gas pipeline explosion near Fresno, central California of the United States, injured at least 14 people Friday afternoon.
Media reports reaching here said the explosion, behind the Fresno County Sheriff's gun range in an area under construction, took place at about 2:30 p.m. local time (21:30 gmt).
A work crew, including county jail inmates, were using heavy equipment at the site. The Fresno Fire Department, which confirmed the injuries, said over Twitter that a 12-inch gas line was struck by a backhoe, triggering the blast.
Video images apparently taken with smartphones or dash cameras within vehicles showed fire and smoke rising from the site.
No law enforcement officers were injured, Tony Botti, a spokesman for the Fresno County Sheriff's Office, was quoted as saying by KCRA TV station. Southbound lanes on Highway 99 were halted for about an hour, as was a nearby rail line out of concern that a passing train could spark leaking gas.
The northbound lanes on Highway 99 remained closed for several hours.
The Pacific Gas & Electric, the utility company operational in much of California on the U.S. west coast, sent crews to turn off the gas line and investigate the incident.
Fresno is about 300 kilometers southeast of San Francisco. Endi