Ameren Illinois begins natural gas safety workshops

From Illinois Business Journal news services

Fire Chief Jason Blackmon and members of the East St. Louis Fire Department gathered at City Hall on Feb. 16 to get an update on natural gas safety protocol from Ameren Illinois Public Awareness Specialist Chris Schildroth. The workshops are designed to heighten awareness of working safely around natural gas hazards when city workers and first responders arrive on the scene of an emergency or smell natural gas. Ameren Illinois will host more than 75 natural gas workshops across central and southern Illinois in 2016. “If they get a 9-1-1 call and they suspect it could be natural gas, we want to make sure they call Ameren Illinois immediately at 1 (800) 755-5000,” said Gina Meehan-Taylor, supervisor of Public Awareness Compliance and Gas Training for Ameren Illinois. “We never want them to try and fix anything.”