NTSB: Father-son team was moving gas meter at time of blast
MINNEAPOLIS — Federal investigators said Friday they are looking into the oversight of a father-son team that was conducting the “hazardous operation” of moving a gas meter at a Minneapolis school when a natural gas explosion caused part of a building to collapse, killing two people.
The father and son were working for a contractor that was moving the meter from inside Minnehaha Academy to outside the school as part of gas company’s CenterPoint Energy’s plan to move meters outside for easier access, the National Transportation Safety Board said.
NTSB investigators were interviewing the father and son, who were working for contractor Master Mechanical, and planned to interview other employees and gas company workers as well, said Christopher Hart, an NTSB board member. He said investigators were seeking details about the relationship between the two companies, the process for contracts, and any oversight of the meter’s movement.
“That’s a very hazardous operation and requires considerable planning and oversight to conduct that operation safely … and we want to find out all we can about how robust was that oversight process,” he said.