Natural Gas Leak Detected Over Weekend At Aliso Canyon Facility

PORTER RANCH (CBSLA.com) — A minor natural gas leak was detected at the Aliso Canyon storage facility near Porter Ranch over the weekend, but officials said Wednesday the issue was quickly repaired and never presented a safety risk to the community.

The leak, which was self-reported by Southern California Gas Co. to local and state regulators, was detected Saturday during a routine inspection, according to the utility's Melissa Bailey.

"Company personnel performed a thorough assessment of the situation and determined the source of the gas to be a small leak from a nearby buried 3-inch-diameter pipeline not associated with the well's operation," Bailey said.

"…This was a very small leak and did not present a safety risk to SoCalGas employees or nearby communities," she said.

A major leak in a well at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility was discovered Oct. 23, prompting hundreds of residents to temporarily move out of the area while efforts were made to contain the flow of natural gas into the air. The leak was capped on Feb. 18. Following an extensive effort to clean Porter Ranch-area homes, the bulk of displaced residents returned to their homes last month.

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