Natural gas safety tips from the City of Union

By Garrett Christensen on Thursday, November 30th, 2023 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News

UNION – (Information from the City of Union Newsletter) The holidays mean an uptick in both cooking and heating, and for many people, that means using natural gas. While gas as a heat source does have its perks, it also comes with a number of common safety risks. To help keep the community safe this winter, the City of Union has provided a list of safety recommendations for using gas appliances and infrastructure. Whether or not you’re actually a Union resident, it never hurts to brush up on safety.

Most utility providers will add a rotten egg smell to their gas lines to make a leak easily detectable. In the event of a leak, the City of Union offers the following DO NOT reminders:

DO NOT:

Remain in the building where the leak was detected.
Use any light switches.
Try to find the source of the leak after detection.
Smoke or strike a match.
Use any electrical equipment that may cause a spark.

If a leak is detected, call 911 and the appropriate utility provider. Even outside of a leak or other immediate emergency, there are plenty of things residents and non-residents can do to safely use their gas appliances. As stated in the city’s recent newsletter:

“Have at least one working carbon monoxide detector for each level of your home
Never use a gas oven or range top as a space heater.
Never cover the temperature controls, air openings, or vents of a gas appliance.
Turn off gas fireplaces and space heaters before going to bed, they are not intended to be a main heat source.
Check gas appliance connector by a qualified appliance service contractor periodically.
Never attach electrical grounding wires to gas piping.
Keep the space around furnaces and water heaters clean and clear of build-up, rags, newspapers or other debris.
Never store combustibles such as gasoline, aerosol cans, paint, solvents, cleaners etc, near any fuel-burning equipment.
Be cautious using products such as paint strippers, glues, varnishes etc as they give off vapors that can be ignited by any flame source, such as a burner pilot light. Vapors can also corrode metal vents and appliance combustion chambers.
Turn off all gas appliances when using these types of products.
Be aware of where gas (and other utility) lines are buried, especially when working outdoors. Always call 811 before you dig!”

Stay safe and happy holidays.