Recognizing and thanking our natural gas workers

You may have seen Memphis Light, Gas and Water crews working around large excavations often in the middle of the road with long, greenish pipelines laid alongside, pipelines ready to put into those excavations over the past 30 years. Yes, it took that long to dig up, replace and retrofit the old, outdated cast iron gas mains around Memphis in the interest of safety and reliability. That long, arduous work was accomplished by MLGW gas workers. It’s time they were recognized and thanked. 

Memphis Light, Gas and Water and other natural gas utilities around the country will observe national Natural Gas Utility Workers’ Day this week on Friday, March 18. It’s a day when communities such as Memphis and Shelby County offer recognition and gratitude to employees who work to provide natural gas service safely and reliably to area homes and businesses – the same workers who retrofitted our gas mains. MLGW would like to thank and honor our natural gas workers for their hard work and their dedication to safety.

MLGW’s natural gas employees had good reason to celebrate at the close of last year as the Division’s 30-year natural gas cast iron pipe retrofit program concluded in December 2021. To commemorate the milestone, a Cast Iron Replacement Celebration was held at Compass School on N. McLean. The $100 million project over the past 30 years replaced more than 330 miles of cast iron pipes with polyethylene or steel pipes. The retrofit program improves natural gas safety for the public and reinforces our infrastructure for reliability and integrity in MLGW’s natural gas supply service, as well as its value for earthquake mitigation.

“We dedicate this Friday to celebrate the exceptional work our natural gas utility workers do every day in Memphis, Shelby County and across the country,” said J.T. Young, MLGW President and CEO. “The completion of our 30-year cast iron replacement project was a huge milestone. MLGW and our customers depend on our natural gas workers to deliver reliable, affordable, and most importantly, safe natural gas service. Safety is a vital aspect of natural gas delivery, and our gas employees put safety first every day. They deserve a day to be recognized for their hard work, dedication and accomplishments. We all offer a huge ‘Thank you!’ to our natural gas workers!”

The annual nationwide event is intended to build public awareness about the hard work done by the employees of natural gas utilities. March 18 is the date of the New London, Texas school explosion in 1937 that killed more than 300 and ultimately led to the widespread odorization of natural gas with the odorant mercaptan and an increased emphasis on gas safety. Mercaptan is that rotten egg smell that makes natural gas detectable and stinky. Safety is a vital aspect to natural gas distribution and the employees of distribution companies endeavor to make natural gas delivery as safe as possible. MLGW’s gas workers go the extra mile, and for that, we are indeed grateful.