What Will Happen When Smart Meters Catch Fire on Natural Gas Line Meters?

By Catherine J. Frompovich

Since I’m a member of the Pennsylvania citizens’ ad hoc committee known as Pennsylvania Smart Meter Awareness (PASMA), which is trying to educate the citizens, state legislature and the PA Public Utility Commission about their fire and health hazards, plus the inequities involved for consumers in view of utility companies figuratively ‘pushing down our throats’ AMI Smart Meters, I’d like to share with my readers the Press Release PASMA put out July 20, 2015. The title of that Press Release is “What Will Happen When Smart Meters Catch Fire on Natural Gas Line Meters,” which I have permission to quote verbatim.

An unbelievable exercise in stupidity, in my opinion, occurs with regard to Smart Meters (SMs). By now, I think most people know of their fire and explosion vulnerabilities due to the materials used and construction design, which really are not as safe as we are told. That’s been proven by Canadian firefighter Brian Thiesen and electric utility company whistleblowers regarding many AMI SM brands.


However, the most asinine part about SMs, I think, is this—at least in the PECO / Philadelphia, PA metropolitan area: The proximity to natural gas line meters of fire-and-explosion-prone electric AMI SMs. Since AMI SMs are known to arc, and being only a foot or two away from the incoming natural gas line and meter, what’s the potential for spectacular SM fires and/or explosions to both electric and natural gas meters?

Perhaps, no one has taken into consideration that there’s a section of the PA Public Utility Commission Act that expressly states utilities cannot cause harm to customers, which I will be studying in detail and report on my findings. Sending RFs/EMFs and “dirty electricity” through a home’s electrical wiring, plus fire-prone AMI SMs on the home’s outside wall, certainly do not constitute safe! People are telling us they can’t sleep at night worrying if their house will catch on fire from the Smart Meter. No one should have to live under such duress, I think. What’s your opinion?

Now, here’s PASMA’s Press Release:

PASMA receives numerous inquiries from gas utility customers who are being pressured into permitting utilities to retrofit AMI Smart Meters (SMs) on to both gas and water meters. Customers’ concerns are especially warranted about gas meters, specifically in view of the history of SMs arcing, catching fire and/or exploding. What happens when an SM does that on a natural gas line meter?

Historically, SMs are fire hazards due to their plastic components and unsafe, fire-prone designs. Fires have been documented often, and dramatically, around the USA by fire department reports. PECO, an Exelon company, at one point in time during 2012 (http://articles.philly.com/2012-10-10/business/34343946_1_sensus-meters-sensus-devices-new-generation-meters) suspended installing SMs in the Philadelphia metropolitan area because of SM fires! Recently, Canadian firefighter Brian Thiesen and other whistleblowers have documented the serious fire dangers from SMs, which no one either in utility companies, or the PA PUC, takes seriously.

In a July 14, 2015 online-published expose’ http://takebackyourpower.net/1000s-of-smart-meter-fires-new-whistleblower-court-evidence-video/, Firefighter Thiesen divulges that Smart Meters have “at least four major sources of arcing.” And he provides the proof! And that “Arcing in ‘smart’ meters causes extreme heat, which causes fires. As we now see, it is beyond any shadow of a doubt that meter manufacturers know, utilities know, and regulators know. They have known the whole time, but they didn’t want to tell you.” Why, then, have they allowed these SM fire hazards to remain?

Thiesen goes on to say, “Why are meters exploding off houses by the 100’s at a time? Why are fires happening no matter where smart/digital meters are being installed? Sensus, Itron, Landis + Gyr, etc: why is it that all these meter makers are having issues everywhere they are being installed?”

Now, the question PASMA has for Pennsylvania natural gas utilities and the PA Public Utility Commission (PA PUC) is: Why, if smoke detectors are required by ordinances to be in every home, are verifiable fire-prone SMs being forced on to electric, gas and water utilities customers? That does not make sense, especially when it comes to installing fire-prone SMs on to natural gas line meters!

It’s quite apparent to PASMA that the PA PUC didn’t think out very carefully the ramifications of what arcing-fire-and-explosion-prone SMs can do when placed on to electric meters that are in close proximity to natural gas meters, or worse yet, when placed directly on to natural gas line meters.

How many houses and/or humans, including pets, will have to be blown to Kingdom Come from fire-prone SMs installed on to natural gas line meters before the PA PUC realizes the huge mistake it’s made in its implementation orders of HB2200 (no mandates for SMs) with the PA PUC’s mandates, thereby making Act 129 of 2008 illegal? The PA PUC cannot write law, but must interpret it correctly.

The PA PUC’s correct interpretation and implementation has not happened in Pennsylvania regarding Act 129 of 2008, PASMA contends. Where is the PA state legislature?

The fact that Smart Meters are known fire hazards was revealed and documented by the electrical workers union in the Texas court case Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local Union 69, Affiliated with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Case 1-CA-103387; 16-CA-112404 (2015). The fire hazards/problems in SMs manufactured by Itron and Landis+Gyr (the SMs PECO installs currently) were reported as testimony to the Texas State Senate by an Oncor SM installer, who subsequently was fired for reporting SM fire facts. However, the ALJ found the facts to be true and ordered the Oncor-fired-installer be rehired and made whole for lost salaries, benefits, etc.

What are the PA PUC’s Administrative Law Judges doing to correct the fire-prone fears and problems the PA PUC has created for hundreds of thousands of electric, gas and water utility customers in Pennsylvania?

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Pennsylvania is unique insofar as there are no opt-out provisions in the PA PUC’s interpretation of the bill (HB2200) the state legislature passed as a NO MANDATES for SMs law! It’s the PA PUC, who believed that the state legislature wanted SMs mandated and wrote its implementation orders accordingly, is where the problem started and has to be fixed, which the PA PUC refuses to do.

Readers in other states need to check out how their legislators voted and what finally passed as SM legislation, which usually is published online in public state government records or journals.

Correction to Article:

Brian Thiesen contacted the author Feb. 27, 2016 asking that she remove “Canadian firefighter Brian Thiesen” from the article because Mr. Thiesen is not a firefighter. Catherine apologies for including Brian Thiesen as a Canadian firefighter, which was in the information she found about him doing her research. Furthermore, Mr. Thiesen stated, “new video coming out soon on the fires and it is my best work by far,” which readers should be on the lookout for in a few months.

Image:  Dees Illustration

Catherine J Frompovich (website) is a retired natural nutritionist who earned advanced degrees in Nutrition and Holistic Health Sciences, Certification in Orthomolecular Theory and Practice plus Paralegal Studies. Her work has been published in national and airline magazines since the early 1980s. Catherine authored numerous books on health issues along with co-authoring papers and monographs with physicians, nurses, and holistic healthcare professionals. She has been a consumer healthcare researcher 35 years and counting.

Catherine’s latest book, published October 4, 2013, is Vaccination Voodoo, What YOU Don’t Know About Vaccines, available on Amazon.com.

Her 2012 book A Cancer Answer, Holistic BREAST Cancer Management, A Guide to Effective & Non-Toxic Treatments, is available on Amazon.com and as a Kindle eBook.

Two of Catherine’s more recent books on Amazon.com are Our Chemical Lives And The Hijacking Of Our DNA, A Probe Into What’s Probably Making Us Sick (2009) and Lord, How Can I Make It Through Grieving My Loss, An Inspirational Guide Through the Grieving Process (2008)


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