BEACH LAKE, PA — Setting the tone for a 20-minute October 17 Berlin Township Board of Supervisors meeting, supervisor Cathy Hunt pointed to two carefully posed decorative skeletons with blinking green eyes, and said it was time to get the skeletons out of the township closet.

The pledge of allegiance had barely ended when the Beach Lake Fire Company alarm sounded, and the radio on Welcome Lake fire chief Craig Case’s belt came to life: “Two-vehicle accident on Beach Lake Highway and Buckingham Road.” Chair Charlie Gries noted that Case is usually among the first to know about disasters in progress, like the pipeline explosion.

“There was a pipeline explosion?” asked the gallery in unison.

“Not really an explosion; just a rupture last Tuesday caused by heavy equipment accidently dropped on the pipe,” said Case. Although Welcome Lake Fire Company did not actively participate in leak containment, it was on call for more than an hour.

How serious was it? Case looked around for emergency management coordinator Rich Miller, responsible for official incident reporting. Not seeing him, Case said the resulting leak forced temporary road closures and gave rise to a plan for evacuation of nearby homes that, owing to logistical difficulties, never took place.

Gries and supervisor Rob Mahon supplied details of the pipeline shutdown, done remotely from Connecticut and Harrisburg. They said they thought shutoff valves located every few miles or so could stop a leak more quickly, reducing ecological damage as well as danger and inconvenience to those in the leak vicinity. Guidelines for reporting a known or suspected leak can be found at pa.pipeline-awareness.com/leak_recognition_response.

Asked if the fire company would be reimbursed for time and expenses related to the accident, Case said that if firefighters had logged eight or more hours in service directly related to the incident, the company might then be eligible for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funds reimbursement. Asked if the pipeline company would reimburse any fire companies for incident-related time and effort, Case said probably not.

In other business, Hunt reported that the Cosgrove Road project, delayed for one year by an $8,139 contractor bid submitted in error, was awarded to second-lowest bidder Waycoat for $31,493.86, and completed to supervisor (roadmasters all) satisfaction in two days’ time. The board voted unanimously at a special meeting on September 29 to have township solicitor Jeff Treat pursue recovery of a surety bond guaranteeing the erroneous bid.

Mahon said PennDOT had begun repairs to Peggy Runway Road, but had so far left untouched the steep and winding section closest to Route 652, previously characterized as “more bumps and potholes than road.”

Gries adjourned the meeting, saying, “You don’t have to leave right now, you know. You can stay and share some giggles.” And that’s what everyone did.