That happened last fall. It wasn't from somebody digging, it was just a pipeline failure. I don't believe anybody was killed, but it was a huge explosion. I'm sure someone could google it or check Snopes for the real story.

 

I am an evcavator operator here in California, if you don't have the pipeline owners on site to mark the lines and give approximate depth plus hand dig when you get close to that depth you will never be off the hook legally.

A couple of months ago I was digging down by the Port of Los Angeles between a butane, hydrogen, propane, natural gas and some other crap going thru a neighborhood @ like 3 feet deep. There were no markers anywhere (in the middle of the street) and the pipe representatives were on site each day we had the ditch open to "supervise" and patch the water proofing on the lines.

I have to admit, I would not have thought there was a line going thru this guys property at least in that magnitude. Something like that would have to be disclosed when a buyer was going to purchase property. (here they would make you sign something stating no excavation without calling them for dig alert first. Odd place to auger a hole...I bet he was drilling a water well if not a post hole.

 

Whoops I did'nt see this post on the second page...