Worker injured as internet installation crew strikes gas line
DOVER (WJER) (Sept. 2, 2022) – Firefighters had to respond when workers drilling horizontally to deploy underground internet cables for Omni Fiber accidentally struck a gas line on the north end of town Thursday.
Captain Mike Mossor says this happened in the 100 block of North Deeds Drive just after 2 p.m.
He says the gas line found an ignition source, catching the drilling rig on fire and causing burn injuries to the operator.
The nearby equipment van also caught fire and was destroyed.
The worker was taken to the hospital with injuries Mossor described as “not very serious.”
Mossor is unsure how this happened as the underground utility lines were marked off.
He says some Dominion East Ohio workers just happened to be in the area to shut off the gas line as firefighters arrived, making it safer to put out the van and drilling rig fires.
The fire burned some grass but did not reach the nearby Zimmer building.
