Talked to some PG and E guys today, installing a new gas line.
I remember from the helicopter photos of the Northridge Earthquake. We saw squares of 4 apartment buildings burned to the ground. It was because a natural gas feed broke, up stream of the shut off. Or maybe down stream, but too hot to get to the shut off.
These made pillars of fire higher than the street lights.
And the fire dept will not approach until the gas is off.
I had even back then made some calls to KGO Radio host Bill Watenberg.
Why not more shut offs. PG and E told me that to get to one buried under the street, min time 30min.
And there was concern about all the pilot lights, if they shut the gas off.
Well today they showed an "excess flow shut off". It is a little section of plastic pipe. Inside a spring based shut off if there seems to be a leak. Once leak is fixed, then through a seep hole pressure will equalize and it reopen.
So each connection, each house, has one.
Then they also have WiFi shut offs now.
Also with the plastic pipes, you just shut it off with squeezing pliers.
Most stuff does not have pilot lights anymore, electrical controls, so they are much more inclined to shut off gas than before.
Natural gas would otherwise be dangerous. I had thought about building a house, but trying to eliminate natural gas. Not really necessary today. Though much is now also being done with solar.
SJG