CRESCENT, Pa. (AP) – A propane system is believed to have been the source of a massive explosion that killed two people and destroyed a house in the Pittsburgh area near the Ohio River earlier this year, authorities said.
A spokesperson for the Allegheny County fire marshal’s office told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the investigation of the March 12 blast in Crescent Township had been closed and “will remain undetermined,” but “the source of the blast is related to the privately owned propane system.”
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s safety division said Tuesday it had concluded its probe and found no evidence linking the blast to natural gas service under public utility jurisdiction. The home had no public utility natural gas service, and while Columbia Gas has natural gas mains in the general area, there were no utility gas mains in the immediate vicinity and no utility gas leaks were found, the commission said.
The commission noted, however, that “while there was no public utility natural gas service connected to the home, a private natural gas well and propane tank were located on the property – which are both outside the PUC’s jurisdiction.”