Skip to main content

Investigators find gas utility pipes separated before deadly Mississippi explosions

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Separate natural gas explosions in January 2024 that destroyed two homes in Jackson, Mississippi resulted from underground pipes pulling loose from their fittings as spongy clay soil expanded and contracted with rainfall, according to a federal report released Thursday.

The first explosion killed Clara Barbour, 82.

The National Transportation Safety Board found that the natural gas utility in the city, Dallas-based Atmos Energy Corp., had detected the leaks before the explosions, but didn’t evaluate them as severe enough for quick repair. The board also found that Atmos didn’t do enough to assess risks and make repairs to its pipeline system and didn’t do enough to educate the public or emergency officials about how to respond to natural gas leaks. It urged regulators to take a closer look at the company.

“Atmos has had significant safety shortfalls in recent years,” the board wrote “Thus, Atmos’s multistate operations require broader oversight.”

Company spokesperson Bobby Morgan said safety remains “our highest priority.”

“We will work diligently in the coming days and weeks to evaluate the findings as part of our ongoing safety efforts to further our vision to be the safest provider of natural gas services,” Morgan said in a statement.

The company distributes natural gas in Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

One explosion and fire in south Jackson on Jan. 24 killed the elderly woman Barbour and slightly injured her husband, Johnny Barbour. Three days later and three-quarters of a mile (1.1 kilometers) away, another explosion leveled one home and burned a neighboring home. No one was injured there.

Investigators found that in both cases, gas pipes feeding the homes had pulled loose from their couplings as soil expanded and contracted, allowing dangerous levels of gas to build up, setting the stage for the explosions.

Much of the Jackson area is built atop a soil layer known as Yazoo clay that expands in wet weather and contracts in times of drought. Besides causing building foundations to crack and roadways to heave, the expansion and contraction can cause pipes to disconnect, and the pipe couplings that an Atmos predecessor installed are not resistant to pulling out, the board found. Investigators recommended that Atmos find and replace all those couplings.

The leak at the Barbour home had been detected Nov. 17, 2023, after the homeowner smelled an odor compound that is inserted into methane gas. An Atmos technician declared the leak nonhazardous, meaning Atmos might not repair it for a year or more. The leak at the second home was detected Dec. 1, but Atmos evaluated it as even less hazardous, scheduling it for repair within three years.

The report indicates the company re-evaluated leaks in Jackson following the explosion and found others that were more serious than initially reported.

The safety board faulted Atmos for not doing more to identify threats posed by expansive soils, noting regulators had been warning about the issue since 2008 and that the NTSB identified expansive soils as a factor in a 2018 Atmos explosion in Dallas that killed one and injured four.

Investigators said Atmos had different safety procedures in different states and that if stricter state rules in Kansas had been followed in Mississippi, the explosions could have been prevented.

“Atmos’s siloed state operations, including leak monitoring procedures that differed by state, demonstrate that Atmos has not applied lessons learned in one state to the other states it operates in,” the board wrote.

McConnell says after weeks of speculation that hospitalization was due to a fall

By WTOP Staff
(CNN) — Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky on Sunday announced, after weeks of speculation, that he had a fall last month that landed him in the hospital.“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I’ve also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia,” he said in a statement.McConnell also provided a photo showing him smiling next to his wife, Elaine Chao. He appears to have a copy of Sunday’s Washington Post sports section on his lap.McConnell said he’s moved from a hospital to a rehabilitation center to continue regaining his strength. His doctors have run through “every test they can think of” to try to determine what caused the incident.The former Senate majority leader said he “won’t be able to return to the Senate floor to vote quite yet” but he’s “been working closely” with legislative staff in the meantime.The statement comes after weeks of questions over McConnell’s health, as aides for the 84-year-old were fiercely protective about releasing information on his condition. The lack of information sparked speculation and rumors online that his health had significantly deteriorated.McConnell, a childhood polio survivor, has faced a series of health issues in recent years, including multiple falls. In 2023, he froze midsentence during a news conference.Along with his own statement, McConnell included a note from the attending physician of Congress, who described the injuries after the fall at his Washington, DC, home as “minor.”“A comprehensive evaluation by a multidisciplinary team determined that he had no fractures, cardiac abnormalities, stroke, tumor, or hemorrhage. Early in his hospitalization, he developed pneumonia, which responded rapidly to antibiotic treatment,” the physician said, adding that the senator has “focused on physical therapy and strategies to reduce his risk of future falls.”Sunday’s statement finally provides an answer to the circumstances of McConnell’s hospitalization on June 14, which has been shrouded in mystery.In his statement, McConnell indirectly addressed why it took so long to share what sent him to the hospital.“You all know how folks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes with growing older. Even in the public eye, I feel that same instinct — I can’t help it,” he said, addressing his “fellow Kentuckians.”McConnell said he has work to do before retiring at the end of his term.“You’re right to expect your representatives to work hard for you. And part of my decision to retire at the end of my term this coming January was being honest about the demands of Senate work. But I still have unfinished business to complete on your behalf, and I have every intention of finishing the job you elected me to do,” he said.When the incident occurred, his spokesperson said only that McConnell was “admitted to the hospital” and was “receiving excellent care.”Video obtained exclusively by CNN last week showed emergency responders taking McConnell to an ambulance on a stretcher after being called to his home.Weeks into McConnell’s absence, an EMS recording published by an independent journalist indicated emergency responders were called to his home for an “unconscious” person for a “cardiac arrest,” and a paramedic is heard saying, “CPR in progress.”After the audio was published, McConnell’s spokesman released another statement saying the Kentucky Republican remained hospitalized as “he continues his recovery” without providing specifics.Some high-profile Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune, issued statements last week saying they recently spoke with McConnell. CNN senior political commentator Scott Jennings told CNN’s Kasie Hunt on “The Arena” that he talked with McConnell on the phone Tuesday and that his “voice sounded strong.”“I’ve had more than my share of experience with physical vulnerabilities,” McConnell said in his statement Sunday.In March 2023, he suffered a concussion and broken ribs after a fall. Months later, he froze midsentence during a news conference. CNN later reported he had suffered two other falls earlier that year.The attending physician noted that “McConnell has experienced several falls throughout the year that have been attributed to his post-polio condition.”Adults who had polio during childhood can develop post-polio syndrome even decades later. Symptoms include gradual weakening of muscles, fatigue, and muscle and joint paint. There is no specific treatment for post-polio syndrome, but patients may receive physical, occupational and speech therapy, medications for certain symptoms or use mobility aids such as walkers and braces.It’s not clear how common post-polio syndrome is, but some studies estimate 25% to 40% of polio survivors experience it, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.McConnell’s statement came the same day it was announced that his colleague Lindsey Graham, a longtime Republican senator from South Carolina, died following a sudden illness. He was 71.This story has been updated with additional information.The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
Read Next Story

Related News

McConnell says after weeks of speculation that hospitalization was due to a fall

Obama Center opens in Chicago with a call to defend democracy and a celebrity crowd

The top photos of the day by AP photojournalists