A business exploded after an 89-year-old pipe in the street failed, highlighting need for natural gas detectors, NTSB says

Hutchinson, Kansas Fire Department

A joint welded between two huge gas pipes nearly 90 years ago and buried under a street failed and caused a Kansas auto parts store to explode in flames, the National Transportation Safety Board determined in a report released Tuesday . The incident has prompted the agency to highlight recommendations that every state require natural gas detectors in buildings that could be impacted by a gas leak.

The natural gas odor outside Steffens Auto Parts store on Main Street in Hutchinson, Kansas prompted a 911 call on the morning of February 22, 2025.

When the fire department arrived they smelled gas and could see signs of gas leaking, including a “mirage” effect in the air and hissing coming from the ground.

“I walk across Main and then I hear it and I see it, and it’s blowing holes in the snow on both sides,” a fire department captain told the NTSB.

After firefighters went into the building their gas monitors alerted immediately and the lone occupant of the building was subsequently evacuated, the NTSB said.

As they were walking away, part of the building collapsed and the explosion sent flames shooting out of the windows, video from a nearby fire department vehicle shows.

“As a fire chief, it is probably one of my worst nightmares. We almost lost six firefighters,” Hutchinson Fire Chief Steven Beer said during a briefing at the time. “The guys got out of the building about 20 seconds before the building exploded.”

Nearly five hours later, gas coming from the street and storm drains was still burning, the NTSB said. The fires were not entirely put out until nearly 11 hours after the explosion.

A joint welded in 1926 between two 10-inch-wide pipes buried under the street failed, sending gas through the ground and into the building, investigators said. The pipe installation was done before modern welding standards and the molten metal didn’t make its way into the space between the two pipes, eventually leading to the failure.

The explosion led the NTSB to highlight their outstanding recommendations to all 50 states to require the installation of natural gas alarms.

For nearly 50 years the agency has recommended wider use of the detectors. The NTSB can recommend changes, but it’s up to lawmakers and regulators to take action to require they are implemented.

堪萨斯州哈钦森消防局

美国国家运输安全委员会周二发布的一份报告显示，堪萨斯州一家汽车配件商店发生爆炸起火，原因是近90年前埋设在街道下的两根巨型燃气管道之间的一个焊接接头失效。此次事故促使该机构强调，各州应强制要求所有可能受燃气泄漏影响的建筑物安装天然气探测器。

2025 年 2 月 22 日上午，堪萨斯州哈钦森市主街上的 Steffens 汽车配件商店外散发出天然气气味，引发了 911 报警。

消防队到达现场后闻到了煤气味，并看到了煤气泄漏的迹象，包括空气中出现“海市蜃楼”效应以及地面发出嘶嘶声。

“我走过主街，然后就听到风声，看到风吹得两边的雪都破了洞，”一位消防队长告诉美国国家运输安全委员会。

美国国家运输安全委员会表示，消防员进入建筑物后，他们的气体监测器立即发出警报，随后建筑物内唯一的住户被疏散。

附近消防车上的视频显示，当他们离开时，建筑物的一部分倒塌，爆炸产生的火焰从窗户里喷涌而出。

“作为一名消防队长，这可能是我最可怕的噩梦之一。我们差点失去了六名消防员，”哈钦森消防队长史蒂文·比尔当时在一次简报会上说。“他们在大楼爆炸前大约20秒逃了出来。”

美国国家运输安全委员会（NTSB）表示，爆炸发生近五个小时后，从街道和雨水排水沟泄漏的燃气仍在燃烧。大火在爆炸发生近11个小时后才被完全扑灭。

调查人员称，埋在街道下的两根10英寸宽的管道之间的一处焊接接头于1926年发生故障，导致气体泄漏到地下并进入建筑物内。管道安装时采用的是现代焊接标准，熔融金属未能流入两根管道之间的缝隙，最终导致了故障。

这次爆炸促使美国国家运输安全委员会 (NTSB) 向所有 50 个州提出了杰出的建议，要求安装天然气报警器。

近50年来，该机构一直建议更广泛地使用这些探测器。美国国家运输安全委员会（NTSB）可以提出改进建议，但最终是否实施这些建议，则取决于立法者和监管机构是否采取行动。