Lawsuit says contractor struck gas lines 10 times

Damage ranged from $296 to $27,886 per incident, according to the lawsuit.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The East Ohio Gas Co. has sued a local contractor for $82,596, alleging the contractor negligently struck and damaged EOG's natural gas lines 10 times in three months.
The lawsuit says Dave Sugar Excavating LLC of Petersburg did the damage while installing a water line for the Mahoning County Sanitary Engineer's Office in the Lake Milton area late last year.
"It was very unusual to see ... that much damage in that short amount of time," said Atty. Stephen J. Pruneski of Akron, who filed the suit in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court Wednesday on behalf of the gas company.
The gas company is seeking compensation for damaged equipment and labor required to make the repairs, and, in some cases, for lost gas, said Pruneski.
There were no explosions, fires, injuries or building evacuations in any of the 10 incidents in which gas lines were damaged, said Dave Sugar Jr., the firm's superintendent and project manager.
In most of these cases, the suit says Sugar hit the gas lines even though they had been previously and accurately marked by the Ohio Utilities Protection Service.
"The lines weren't located properly. They were mismarked," or not marked at all, Sugar said, adding that his company called the Ohio Utilities Protection Service in all cases before it dug.
Whenever his crew hit a gas line, Sugar said he videotaped the scene and any gas line markings and interviewed witnesses to document what occurred. "This doesn't happen if things are properly marked," he added.
The suit's claims
The 10 damage incidents listed in the lawsuit are:
Sept. 22, 16993 County Line Road, $572 damage.
Sept. 27, near Grandview Avenue and Pritchard-Ohltown Road, $3,361 damage.
Oct. 4, 1302 North East River Road, $11,177 damage.
Oct. 13, at Oakwood Drive and Chool, $726 damage.
Oct. 17, at North East River Road and Mahoning Avenue, $22,186 damage.
Nov. 1, at County Line and North East River roads, $27,886 damage.
Nov. 3, at North East River Road and Milton Avenue, $14,414 damage.
On Dec. 5, near Summerset Drive and North East River Road, $1,552 damage.
On Dec. 21, 1518 North East River Road, $296 damage.
On Dec. 22, 1816 North East River Road, $427 damage.
Factors determining the amount of damage include the size and location of the gas lines, the difficulty of repair and whether gas loss was substantial, Pruneski said.