Remnants of Columbia Gas Disaster Remain 6 Months Later

If the September 2018 Columbia Gas disaster is any indication, the impact of an emergency situation can extend far beyond the initial restoration effort.  Six months after the Columbia Gas explosions, impacted residents are still dealing with the stress of unpaid claims, poor communication from the company, and a decline in the quality of service.

How the Impact of the Columbia Gas Disaster has Lingered

Columbia Gas recently held town hall meetings to address the concerns of local residents that were impacted by the September gas disaster.  The main point of contention during the meetings was the lag in paying claims, coupled with a lack of transparency and communication.  I imagine one thing leads to the other.

Simply put, it’s been 6 months yet there are hundreds of customer claims that have not been addressed.  This includes reimbursing customers for food they purchased while displaced from their homes, damaged heating equipment, and property damage.  It also includes things like repaving roads, repairing curbs, and restoring landscaping. 

All told, the company has shelled out close to $100 million encompassing a whopping 24,000 claims.  Although that represents good progress, as of the time of this writing, there are still over 800 claims outstanding.

I can definitely understand where the impacted residents are coming from.  Through no fault of their own, they have been thrown into a stressful situation that requires jumping through hoops to temporarily shuffle living arrangements and recoup money they would never have had to spend in the first place. 

Of course, there is no easy solution from Columbia’s perspective.  The company is likely at the mercy of its own insurers.  That said, it sounds like customer expectations could have been managed better, which requires a greater emphasis on emergency communications.  Hopefully, the company will document these issues from a lessons learned perspective so that plans can up updated appropriately.