Prairie Public NewsRoom
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Bemidji contractor will not be fined for damage to a Minot gas line

A Minnesota contractor will not face any fines after it damaged an MDU gas line in Minot.

MDU filed a complaint against Tom’s Backhoe Service of Brainerd, saying it violated the state’s one-call excavation notice law. The company had asked for – and received – permission to dig.

"The alleged violation was that Tom's Backhoe did not execute the appropriate care required during excavation," said North Dakota Public Service Commission chairman Brian Kalk.

Kalk says the company did $400 damage to the gas line. He says Tom’s Backhoe paid that. But he says the company argued that it did take necessary care during the dig.

"From my viewpoint, it looked like the underground facility (gas line) had different depths," said Kalk. "At one point it's two feet, at another a few inches, at the next point it's a few more feet."

The company testified that an MDU service technician said that particular gas line had been cut twice previously – and there were four splices in that line.

So, the PSC did not find that the company violated the law.

Commissioner Julie Fedorchak says it points out that maintenance of existing gas and power lines is a shared responsibility.

"You have to have careful operators doing the excavation notices and exercising care," said Fedorchak. "You also have to have the utilities properly maintaining their infrastructure."

Kalk says this is the first time that a “one-call” complaint has been dismissed.

Related Content