Largest natural gas outage in Avista’s history cuts off heat to much of the Palouse; some customers could be without power 3-5 days

SPOKANE — Numerous schools were closed Thursday after a major natural gas pipeline was ruptured, severing the source of heat for much of the Palouse.

Avista reported in a news release that the pipeline is owned by Williams Pipeline and stretches between Pullman and Colfax. Avista contracts with Williams Pipeline for its use. The outage is the largest in Avista’s history and has affected service for Pullman, Clarkston, Palouse, Uniontown, Colton and Albion in Washington and Moscow, Lewiston, Troy, Bovill, Deary and Genesee in Idaho.

Jared Webley, Avista’s senior communications manager, said the broken pipe has affected 36,750 customers.

Webley said technicians from Avista and other utility companies are going door-to-door in the outage area, shutting off gas meters.

“That’s the No. 1 priority right now,” he said.

Avista needs to shut off everyone’s gas before Williams can repressurize and restart the system, Webley said. Customers do not need to be home when technicians shut off their meters, but they are encouraged to leave their gates open and remove anything obstructing meters.

Webley stressed that only Avista technicians can turn a customer’s gas back on.

“Do not turn it back on yourself and do not try to light anything yourself, it is only a credentialed Avista serviceman that is allowed to turn it back on,” Webley said. “Nobody should be paying anybody to do that work.”

While customers don’t need to be home when their meters are shut off, they do need to be home for the relighting process.

Avista’s personnel will identify themselves to homeowners before entering a residence. If a customer isn’t home when a service worker knocks, Avista will leave a card at the door.

Webley said the length of the outage depends on how long it takes Williams to repair the pipeline. Avista estimates that once the pipe is fixed, fully restoring natural gas service will take three to five days.

Williams provided a short written statement, but otherwise refused to answer questions.

In an email, Williams said a “third-party” broke the pipeline Wednesday afternoon, near Pullman.

The Washington State Patrol reported the leak occurred when a worker struck a gas line along U.S. Highway 195 between Colfax and Pullman. The highway was closed temporarily while crews assessed the danger.

“There were no injuries, no fire, or explosion associated with the incident,” Williams wrote in its statement. “We anticipate returning the pipeline to service today.”

If Williams completes repairs Thursday, Avista expects to begin relighting natural gas appliances Friday.

The Lewiston, Pullman and Moscow school districts are among those that canceled classes Thursday.

The University of Idaho announced that classes will be canceled Thursday and Friday.

Williams is a publicly-traded, multi-billion dollar natural gas company headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The company built the first stretch of its Northwest Pipeline 60 years ago. Today, the Northwest Pipeline is 3,900 miles long and carries gas across Washington, Oregon, Idaho, southwestern Wyoming, Utah and eastern Colorado.

Longtime Troy, Idaho resident Shirley Stephens, 76, lost heat and hot water in her home Wednesday night. She said it’s cold, but she’s hanging in there.

“I’ve lived in Idaho my whole life and a little cold doesn’t bother me,” she said. “I just add another blanket around me.”

As of Wednesday afternoon, Troy residents hadn’t heard any update about when the gas line would be fixed. Stephens said if it gets too cold in her home, she will go stay with her sister who has a wood stove.