Another gas leak reported near fatal blast site

Image taken from a recent Watercare photo that shows the site of the recent trench explosion. Photo / file

There has reportedly been another gas leak tonight at the site of a fatal blast in Onehunga that killed a woman.

Fire Service shift commander Jaron Phillips said a member of the public called just after 5pm to report the smell of gas on the intersection of Mt Smart Road and Onehunga Mall.

But he said that after fire fighters took multiple gas detector readings, the area was declared safe.

Philomen Gulland, a Canadian mother-of-two, a maintenance planner for Watercare Services, was killed when the water main pipe she entered exploded in the suburb of Onehunga early Saturday morning.

Ian Winson, 47, a network engineer for Watercare, was in a "seriously ill but stable" condition in the intensive care ward at Auckland Hospital today, a hospital spokesman said. He lost both his legs in the explosion.

The Department of Labour said today that it could take up to six months to find out the cause of the blast.

Fire Service area commander Murray Binning, officer in charge at the scene, said investigations were continuing to investigate how the methane gas got into the pipe.

"It's a naturally occurring gas, and we are not sure of the source at this stage," he said.

"We still have no idea what started the explosion."

- Herald Online, NZPA