Report: Gas company doesn’t know if 30 percent of its pipes are safe

The gas company PG&E cannot locate records for 30 percent of its underground gas lines in populated areas in California, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The gas company's pipeline burst and killed eight people in San Bruno, California last year, due to a faulty and unmaintained weld seam on the pipe. The company later admitted none of its documentation on that pipe said it contained a weld seam, which requires particular tests to ensure its safety.

A state agency demanded that PG&E officials produce documentation on their other California pipelines in populated areas by March 15. Democratic Rep. Jackie Speier told the Chronicle that PG&E President Chris Johns informed her the company couldn't locate the records for 30 percent of those pipes. The company will have to do expensive high-pressure water tests on any pipes that aren't documented adequately within its system.

Earlier this week, an entire town in Ohio was evacuated after Dominion Gas-owned pipes leaked.

(San Bruno, California after the gas pipe explosion: AP.)