The explosion that occurred in the kitchen of a resident on Latgales Street in Riga left the apartment owner extremely dissatisfied. He blames the gas service, which recently carried out work in his home, but the company GASO denies its guilt.
Raitis's new dishwasher now lies charred in the yard of the house. It, along with the rest of the kitchen equipment, burned on that tense and emotional day that began with an explosion, reports the show Degpunktā (TV3). Raitis recounts that he returned from work and lay down to rest when the explosion occurred.
Firefighters extinguished the flames that erupted in the kitchen, and the entire next day the man spent cleaning up the aftermath and worrying about the newly purchased appliances and the destroyed new kitchen.
"Do you think I invested 4500 euros in a new kitchen? I just cleaned everything — the gas stove, the kitchen, everything that was bought, all this side is damaged," says Raitis.
The owner's anger and outrage are also directed at the gas service — less than an hour before the fire, a GASO employee connected the new stove to the gas supply. According to Raitis, everything seemed normal, the technician left, but immediately after that, a smell appeared, and soon there was an explosion. "This is GASO's fault, there is no other option," he asserts.
However, GASO describes the situation differently. On that day, after the work was completed, the technician and Raitis signed a completion certificate, and no leaks were recorded. The head of the Riga branch of GASO, Ainars Selickis, refers to Raitis's statement, in which he claimed he did not smell anything.
Why Raitis stated the opposite on the air of Degpunktā is unclear. Perhaps stress and memories of the experience caused confusion. This story could have ended here: each side asserts its own, and it remains to wait for the results of the examination.
But this time — no. GASO makes a final statement, claiming that Raitis made serious mistakes in setting up his new kitchen. It was established that after the last visit in November and before the explosion, the internal gas pipeline system in the apartment was illegally altered.
Selickis adds that he is in constant contact with Raitis to restore the gas supply to the apartment as soon as possible, but at the same time advises to ensure that all work in the living space is carried out in accordance with regulations — otherwise, even more serious consequences may arise.
