Ignition

A fire in February that killed one person and destroyed a city block in Kansas City, MO, was caused by the “accidental ignition of natural gas vapors that accumulated” inside a restaurant, according to a report by the Kansas City Fire Department. Pilot lights had been left on at JJ’s restaurant despite warnings from crews investigating a nearby gas line rupture, and the fire began in the kitchen with “heat from an open flame or smoking materials” listed as the heat source (see Daily GPI, Feb. 22). However, the report did not assign blame as to what caused the Missouri Gas Energy pipeline to explode. The report was compiled by the city, the city fire department, the police department and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The Missouri Public Service Commission and the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration are conducting separate investigations.