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January 10, 2003
Naperville, Ill. - A water main ruptured at 10th Street and Poplar Drive in Wilmette sometime early this morning, creating a high pressure release of water. This in turn caused a rupture to a natural gas main that provides service to customers in parts of Wilmette and Evanston on either side of the Metra/Union Pacific North Line railroad tracks.
Nicor Gas has hundreds of personnel striving to restore natural gas service to approximately 1,400 customers in the two towns who are currently without service and may be without heat throughout the night.
Nicor crews are currently stopping at each house to shut off the source of natural gas to the house. In most cases, the meters are located inside the house. The company must first shut off the gas to ALL affected homes.
Only after all homes have the gas shut off can the pipeline be re-pressurized. The last step is for the Nicor Gas crews to return to the homes to turn the gas back on, relight the pilot lights and make sure the service is operating normally.
"Nicor Gas employees are dedicated to restoring service to our customers as quickly as possible on this cold winter night," said Rocco D'Alessandro, senior vice president of operations for Nicor Gas. "We ask for our customers' cooperation in helping us gain access to their homes because this will speed the restoration of service for everyone.
"We also want to thank the Wilmette and Evanston police and fire departments, respectively, who have been providing exceptional assistance to our workers, and to the officials there who have set up warming centers in each community for their residents who may want to leave their homes," he added.
For residents planning to stay in their homes, the company strongly advises that all safety precautions regarding fireplaces, candles, appliances, etc. be carefully monitored.
For residents planning to leave their home, Nicor Gas needs access to your home. First, check to see if the company work crews have already visited your home to shut off your meter. Tags are being placed in a visible location on all homes, and residents are asked not to remove the tag. If you are leaving, please provide a telephone number where you can be reached by Nicor. Customers should remember that all homes need to have the gas source shut off before the system can be restored. All Nicor Gas personnel visiting homes carry company identification badges.
Anyone with additional questions should contact Nicor Gas 1 888 NICOR4U (1 888 642-6748) to get the latest information from the company on the current situation.
Nicor will post information on its Web site, www.nicor.com. The company's Call Center representatives have been expanded to handle customer calls. As always, the Nicor Gas Call Center is open 24 hours per day continuously.
Nicor Gas is one of the nation's largest gas distribution companies. Owned by Nicor, Inc. (NYSE: GAS) a holding company, Nicor Gas has provided safe, reliable natural gas services for more than 45 years. The Company serves two million customers in a service territory that encompasses most of the northern third of Illinois, excluding the city of Chicago. For more information, visit the Nicor Web site at www.nicor.com.
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