Plum, PA House Explosion, Homeowners Having Hot Water Tank Issues Before Deadly Blast, East of Pgh
- 'Homeowners were having issues with hot water tank before deadly blast in Pennsylvania, officials say,' AP News, Aug. 15, 2023, (Updated 5:23 pm). - Ed.
PLUM, Pa. (AP) — The owners of a home that exploded in western Pennsylvania last weekend were having issues with their hot water tank, authorities said, but the cause of the blast that killed five people — including two municipal officials — remains under investigation.
The explosion in Plum destroyed three structures and damaged at least a dozen others. It occurred shortly before 10:30 a.m. Saturday at a home owned by Heather Oravitz, the town’s community development director, and her husband. The town is about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Pittsburgh.
Plum Mayor Harry Schlegel said Oravitz, 51, and Plum Borough Manager Michael Thomas, 57, were killed in the blast, along with 3 others who lived in the neighborhood: Kevin Sebunia, 55; Casey Clontz, 38; & Clontz’s 12-year-old son, Keegan. Oravitz’s husband, Paul, suffered severe burns over most of his body remained hospitalized Tuesday in critical condition, Schlegel said. Two others injured in the blast were treated at a hospital & released.
The fire marshal’s office said in a statement Monday that it was aware of the reported hot water tank issues. The agency planned to investigate the cause of the blast, with the hot water tank issue in mind, & “along with any and all other possibilities." The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the development is on abandoned mine land surrounded by shallow still-producing or abandoned oil & gas wells. Two producing gas wells are within about 1000 feet (305 meters) of the home that exploded...
- More, https://apnews.com/article/house-explosion-plum-pennsylvania-1844050d9c23871ac671322e619015f8
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- Related: '5 people, including a child, are dead after an explosion destroys 3 homes and damages 12 others,.' AP News, Aug. 13, 2023.
PLUM, Pa. (AP) — Five people were found dead after a house explosion in western Pennsylvania that destroyed three structures and damaged at least a dozen others, authorities said Sunday.
Plum Borough Police Chief Lanny Conley said the bodies of four adults and one adolescent were recovered after the blast shortly before 10:30 a.m. Saturday in the borough, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Pittsburgh.
“This is certainly a sad, sad day and a sad time, for not just the folks in Plum but all the folks in the community and in this region,” said Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald.
Of the three people taken to hospitals, two were released while one remained in critical condition, said Steve Imbarlina, deputy director of fire and emergency services for Allegheny County. Fifty-seven firefighters were treated at the scene for minor issues. https://apnews.com/article/house-explosion-plum-pennsylvania-aa5151153aaeaaa9b2972d5f7ad4baaa
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CA is largely gas. I'd switch to heat pump but electricity costs out of sight. Rates just went up.
I would switch to solar but it's not cost effective for me. And I still need propane for backup power, with lines going down and out all the time for storms and wildfires.
If I move out of the woods, I will get hecka solar to pay for cooling and heating. In the works. Should not need gas at that point.
My first home had gas and I was scared shitless, but in time I replaced a master valve in the furnace to save loads of money, but had the gas company inspect it before we fired it up.
Gas is being phased out in new construction. Propane seems to burn hotter than nat gas. Hard to get a low heat without a diffuser. So I use a small single electric burner for that.
But water boils at 207˚F at my altitude. 
Hot weather lately so I hang around and spend too much time on DU. Getting my money"s worth.
Nobody's hot water tank is going to make this BIG of an explosion.
After all the tap dancing around, they'll wait till the interest dies does a bit, and THEN it's finally going to come out. The explosion is from an old gas well that was shut down improperly, and probably was leaking unnoticed for a few years.
There have already been explosions in Plum Boro (suburb of Pittsburgh) for exactly that reason. The oil & gas companies have been notoriously lax in shutting down old wells and the state has been way too lenient in holding them responsible for fixing the problem.
It's not fracking that caused this, by the way. It's the old style extraction wells that stopped producing, so they capped them and walked away. Some are over 100 years old, but most are more recent.
