Vol. 199 No. 1
asked the Minister for Transport and Power the number of persons who have lost their lives during the past five years in Dublin owing to gas poisoning accidents; if he will state the causes of the accidents; and if he is satisfied that adequate precautions to prevent these tragedies are being taken.
52.
asked the Minister for Transport and Power if he is aware of the growing public concern about fatal deaths and accidents in Dublin owing to gas escapes; and if any control is exercised by him or by Dublin Corporation over the maintenance and inspection of gas mains, particularly in cases where these have been in operation for many years.
I propose with the permission of the Ceann Comhairle to take Questions Nos. 51 and 52 together.
The official statistics relating to deaths from gas poisoning relate to the country as a whole. I have been informed that the numbers of accidental deaths due to gas poisoning in the past five years in the area served by the Dublin Gas Company were: 1958, 9; 1959, 1; 1960, 6; 1961, 11; and 1962, 7. These exclude cases of suicide or cases where an open verdict was returned.
As to the causes of these accidents, I am informed by the company that the evidence furnished to the coroner showed that in the great majority of these accidents the presence of gas was due to gas taps having been left on. In certain of these cases contributory causes such as fainting fits, heart failure or other medical conditions were established. In two cases the accident was caused by gas mains having been broken due to abnormal subsidence of the ground. In every case a test of the house installation, where a house is involved, is made after an accident and the reports are submitted to the coroner's court.
Under the Gas Acts, the gas company are responsible at law for the safety of their installations. I am informed by the company that changes in the method of manufacture recently adopted have led to a reduction in the carbon monoxide content of their gas and that the possibility of further improvement is under examination.
