08/30/2011

Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco/San Mateo) today released the following statement after the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released its final report on the deadly gas explosion in San Bruno::

"I commend the NTSB for an excellent and thorough report. It confirmed what we’ve known for some time: PG&E put shareholder profits above public safety, regulators turned a blind eye, and the consequences were deadly. As the report said, this accident occurred as a result of flawed pipe, flawed operations, and flawed oversight. It was not an act of God.  It was as NTSB chairwoman Deborah Hersman stated, 'an organizational accident.' We must do better in the future. The NTSB made several important safety recommendations which Congress should make the law of the land. Chief among them is requiring pipes installed before 1970—like the one that ruptured in San Bruno—to be properly tested. As the one year anniversary of the San Bruno tragedy approaches, it is critical that we do everything in our power to ensure this never happens to another community."