3703.1 The Natural Gas Utility shall immediately dispatch personnel to the site of the Gas Emergency and shall arrive at the site within fifty (50) minutes of receiving an emergency call during normal business and non-business hours.

3703.2 A Gas Emergency shall be reported by telephone and e-mail to OCE and OPC with as much detailed information as possible at the earliest practicable time, but not later than thirty (30) minutes after the Natural Gas Utility's dispatch has been informed that a Gas Emergency has occurred. The Natural Gas Utility shall provide updates to the initial report as it receives more information. This reporting requirement applies to business and non-business hours.

3703.3 Each telephone and e-mail report of a Gas Emergency shall state clearly, at a minimum, the following information:

1. (a) A description of the Gas Emergency;
2. (b) The dates when the Gas Emergency began and ended;
3. (c) The location of the Gas Emergency, including street address and intersection, the ward(s) and/or quadrant(s) where the Gas Emergency occurred and the name of the person making the report and contact information;
4. (d) Pipe size, material, pressure and type of gas pipeline involved;
5. (e) The estimated number of customers impacted by the Gas Emergency, and street shutdowns, if known;
6. (f) A preliminary assessment as to the cause of the Gas Emergency, if known;
7. (g) The time between becoming aware of the Gas Emergency and responding (arriving at the emergency site) to the Gas Emergency, if known;
8. (h) The estimated time to clear the Gas Emergency, if known;
9. (i) The estimated time to repair Pipeline Facilities affected by the Gas Emergency, and/or restore service, if known; and
10. (j) A preliminary assessment as to any injuries, deaths, or personal property damage, if known.

3703.4 During the course of a Gas Emergency on the Natural Gas Utility's system, the Natural Gas Utility shall report periodically by telephone and e-mail to OCE and OPC, regarding the status of the Gas Emergency and the utility's progress in clearing the Gas Emergency and making the site safe. The Natural Gas Utility shall provide updates or progress on the Gas Emergency every hour until the Gas Emergency is resolved.

3703.5 Written reports concerning all Gas Emergencies shall be filed with the Commission and OPC within five (5) days of the event occurrence. The Natural Gas Utility shall provide updates to its written report as it receives more information.

3703.6 Each written report concerning a Gas Emergency shall state clearly, at a minimum, the following information:

(a) The date and time when the Gas Emergency began and ended;

(b) The location(s) of the Gas Emergency, including street addresses and intersections, the ward(s) and/or quadrants where the service outage occurred;

(c) Pipe size, material, pressure, and type of gas pipeline involved, if applicable;

(d) The date and time when the emergency crew arrived at the scene;

(e) The estimated number of customers affected by the Gas Emergency;

(f) The steps taken to minimize and/or control the Gas Emergency;

(g) An assessment as to any injuries, deaths, or personal property damage; and

(h) A description of the Gas Emergency and provide a root cause analysis of the cause of the Gas Emergency and the steps the Natural Gas Utility will implement to prevent such an occurrence in the future, if any.

SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 56 DCR 7646 (September 25, 2009), incorporating text of Proposed Rulemaking published at 56 DCR 1827, 1828 (February 27, 2009); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 66 DCR 15460 (November 22, 2019).