LAFD NEWS

Los Alamos Fire Department Safety Division Chief Joseph Baca has shared an announcement from New Mexico Gas notifying the community of the possibility of an occasional smell of gas in the Quemazon area starting today and continuing to April 12:

New Mexico Gas is doing their DOT required in-line inspection on the Los Alamos DOE 12” Transmission Pipeline. This project consists of running a tool, normally called a pig, inside the pipeline to assess the integrity of the pipe itself.

The project starts at Los Alamos West, near the Quemazon community, down to Los Alamos East which is right off Hwy 502 and Camino Entrada.

At some point during this project, blowing down small amounts of gas at Los Alamos West is required to put the tool inside the line and gas venting will be necessary at the Los Alamos East station for a short time to make sure the tool gets to its final destination. Our project starts April 1, with the possibility of ending April 12 but may take less time. 

“We are taking the necessary precautions to make sure the safety of the public and the working personnel are not at risk. Natural gas is lighter than air, so it naturally goes up and will not settle down on the ground. Our vent pipe is on the south side of our station, closer to the canyon side, and far enough from the traffic passing by on Hwy 502,” spokesman Victor Andrade said.