PA Media Lean on Exaggeration

Late Monday evening residents in West Goshen Township of Chester County reported a sound similar to a car backfire. The noise was later confirmed by company spokespeople to have been related to routine maintenance and inspection procedures at a Mariner East 1 flare stack.

Predictably, the media was quick to jump on the opportunity to label the noise as an ‘incident’ that ‘jolted,’ ‘rattled,’ and ‘scared’ residents in the area.

Two stories, published in the Delco Times and the Philadelphia CBS affiliate, ignored the reality of the situation. Pipeline operators were following regularly-scheduled maintenance to ensure the Mariner East 1 pipeline is continuing operate safely and efficiently.

Likening the car backfire noise to an ‘incident’ is another shot by the media to defile energy infrastructure in Pennsylvania. In reality this is a non-story.