On Halloween, the Colonial gas line in Shelby County, Alabama, just outside of Birmingham, exploded. According to reports, the explosion, which sent flames as high as 50 feet in the air, occurred when Colonial subcontractors were operating on the pipeline.
At the time of this piece, ten acres of land surrounding the explosion remained on fire, and at least seven people had been injured.
The Colonial Pipeline closed down its gasoline pipeline, which parallels this one, just over a month ago when it leaked an estimated 250,000 gallons in Shelby County as well. The pipeline is owned and operated by Colonial Pipeline Company, a private firm that counts Shell and Koch Capital Investments as owners.
In response, Director of Sierra Club Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign Lena Moffitt released the following statement:
“The Sierra Club’s thoughts and prayers go out to the seven people reportedly injured and their families, those continuing to fight this fire, and all those affected by tonight’s disaster.
“Given these two recent disasters, we call for the federal government to conduct an immediate investigation into the Colonial Pipeline Company so that those impacted are fully compensated and no community is forced to face the risks Shelby County and so many like it around the country do on a daily basis. ”
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