Shuster Tours Artemas Compressor Station in Bedford

Press Release

On Friday November 11th, Congressman Bill Shuster toured the Artemas Compressor Station in Bedford County, which was recently the site of a fire in which no one was injured.

"As the elected representative for Bedford County and as the Chairman of the Pipelines Committee in Congress, it is critical that I have the opportunity to view our pipeline infrastructure first hand," Shuster said. "While the fire that took place at the station is unfortunate, no one was harmed and from what I saw on the tour, everything possible is being done by Columbia Gas Transmission and Storage to identify the problem and get it fixed."

The Artemas Compressor Station in southern Bedford County helps facilitate the flow of natural gas from the Artemas Storage Field to Columbia's main pipeline system in Pennsylvania, which runs west to east along the southern border of the 9th district.

"The Columbia Gas team has handled the situation very well," Shuster added. "They have been in close contact with me, federal pipelinesafety officials,as well as the community and local government. Gas transmission through pipelines remains one of the safest ways to transport energy over long distances. A fire like the one that occurred at the Artemas Station is rare."

During the tour, Shuster was briefed on the incident as well as what steps are being taken to identify the cause of the fire and what measures must be taken to get the station working at full capacity again.

"We appreciate Congressman Shuster taking the time to visit our facility and meet with our employees," said Victor Gaglio, Senior Vice President of Operations at Columbia Gas Transmission and Storage. "We're committed to keeping the Congressman and the local community informed and assured that the accident's cause will be understood and that lessons learned will be applied to ensure the safety of our employees and the surrounding community."

Source