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'Liquid lunches' to blame for village gas problems
ARE Harefield village's continual gas leaks the result of one too many pints of alcohol consumed by those responsible for laying the pipes?
This is the theory being put forward by a resident of Merle Avenue, Harefield, who lives opposite The Harefield pub, which bore the brunt of the gas leaks when it was forced to close for business earlier this Autumn.
However, the theory seems to have some gravitas, as the woman, who has asked not to disclose her name, has an interesting family history.
She said: "The gas main which has been the cause of numerous leaks during the present summer, was laid in 1903.
"The gas main was laid from Watford, lower end of High St. Watford, to The Filicol Cement Company, The Main, Church Hill, Harefield.
"My grandfather was a member of the gang who were hand digging the trenches along the whole distance of several miles.
"He told me the story of the General Foreman who was the only man licensed to 'make the joints' but as he had a 'liquid lunch' in the Prince of Wales, on Batchworth Heath, he sometimes made a mistake when jointing.
"He simply used clay or mud from the trench to make the joint instead of the correct compound, thus causing the gas leaks when the clay or mud dried out and shrank away from the sides of pipes."
So what do you think? Is a 100 year urge for a lunchtime pint and lazy workmanship the result of the village's gas problems?
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