City denies claim it knew of gas leak before Prince George blast

The City of Prince George is denying allegations that it failed to act when a smell of natural gas was reported the day before an explosion in the downtown core.

The blast at an unoccupied former restauranton the morning of Aug. 22, 2023, injured three people one seriouslyand caused extensive damage to the surrounding area.

In January, the owner of a nightclub next to the building filed a lawsuit alleging that the city was responsible for what happened, claiming that an employee reported smelling gas on Aug. 21 and reported it to a city bylaw officer, who said they "would take care of the problem."

In its response, filed March 4, the city says it denies "each and every allegation" in the suit, as well as responsibility for any loss and damages claimed.

The response also claims no odour of natural gas was detected at the building on Aug. 21.

"The [City of Prince George] employee did not detect the odour of natural gas emanating from, at or within the vicinity of the building at any time on Aug.21, 2023," it reads.

It is not clear from the initial lawsuit how the nightclub owner,Encore Promotions, came to be aware of reports of the smell of natural gas a day prior to the explosion.

According to RCMP, the unoccupied building had been inspected and locked up by its owners on the evening of Aug. 21 with no problems reported, butit was then "broken into over the course of the night by multiple unauthorized people."

"Fire investigators have further determined there is evidence of copper pipe theft, which resulted in damage to at least one natural gas line," Cpl. Jennifer Cooper said in a release lastSeptember.

Encore Promotions says in its lawsuit that neither relief funds from the city nor insurance has been enough to cover the losses they have suffered as a result of the blast, and askedthat a judge award the nightclub costs plus interest.

In the lawsuit, the nightclub owners say they havebeen unable to reopen, causing "a loss of profits and other specified damages."