MO: Nearly 29,000 lose natural gas due to overdue bills

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Saturday, August 25, 2001

Nearly 29,000 lose natural gas due to overdue bills

The Associated Press

Nearly 29,000 Missouri households have been disconnected from natural gas service because of overdue bills dating to last winter.

Another 50,000 households are in danger of losing their service if they don't make the necessary payments, the Missouri Public Service Commission said Friday.

The number of disconnected lines already is up 25 percent from last year, which is a concern heading into the winter months, said commission chairman Kelvin Simmons.

"We are hoping that individuals will immediately try to make arrangements with their local gas companies so they can get reconnected," Simmons said.

If utilities are faced with a large number of people seeking to re-establish service on the first cold day, utility companies may be too overloaded to act quickly, he said. A reconnection and routine safety inspection typically takes about 45 minutes.

State rules require a natural gas company to restore service no later than the next working day after a payment has been received by the company.

Last winter's high gas bills were caused by a spike in natural gas prices and colder-than-usual weather in November and December

http://www.newstribune.com/stories/082501/sta_0825010031.asp

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), August 25, 2001


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