Weather delays and busy student schedules have plagued the 2023 speech season for Luverne High School, but a full team helped LHS repeat its second-place finish at last week’s subsection competition in Windom.
LHS bested eight other teams for the runner-up position.
Windom took the subsection title.
Students who finished in sixth place or higher in their respective categories qualified for the Section 3A speech tournament scheduled for April 15 in Redwood Falls.
At sections, the top three students in each category qualify for the state speech tournament on April 28-29 in Apple Valley.
Luverne is the defending Section 3A champion.
LHS participants at the subsection tournament, their placings, and competition category are as follows:
•Zander Carbonneau, first, extemporaneous speaking.
•Parker Carbonneau, second, extemporaneous speaking.
•Jessika Tunnissen, second, informative speaking.
•Brianna Kinsinger, second, creative expression.
•Xavier McKenzie, third, informative speaking.
•Elizabeth Mulder, fourth, informative speaking.
•Grace Ingebretsen, fourth, extemporaneous reading.
•Zoey Berghorst, fourth, discussion.
•Roselynn Hartshorn, fifth, original oratory.
•Makayla Oechsle, fifth, discussion.
•Maddy Schepel, sixth, discussion.
•Brooke Vos, sixth, extemporaneous reading.
William Johnson was notified on Monday that he will compete in original oratory at the section meet. He became eligible when the other subsection meet didn’t fill all six available slots in the category.
Luverne had its largest student participation at the subsection meet with 16 students competing, compared with the two previous meets where half that number participated.
“Weather has impacted our competitions quite a bit,” said coach Gavin Folkestad.
As a result, the Big South speech tournament scheduled for March 16 was canceled.
“A few years ago, they tried postponing, but finding a date that worked for all schools and the hired judges proved to be too problematic, especially with the state of spring activities,” Folkestad said.
The same storm that canceled the Big South Tournament prompted the Russell-Tyler-Ruthton invitational to be moved from March 18 to March 21, resulting in a smaller tournament than expected.
Twelve schools competed involving 117 students.
Luverne fielded a team of seven students, placing fifth.
Results for the Luverne speech team at the R-T-R event are as follows:
•Jessika Tunnissen, first, informative speaking.
•Makayla Oechsle, third, discussion.
•Brianna Kinsinger, fourth, creative expression.
•Brooke Vos, fourth, extemporaneous reading.
•Elizabeth Mulder, fourth, informative speaking.
•Grace Ingebretsen, sixth, extemporaneous speaking.
•Brianna Kinsinger and Bethany Behr, eighth, dynamic duo.
Luverne competed at the Minneota speech invitational March 25 with a team of nine students.
“With state basketball, robotics and FCCLA all taking place, this meet was smaller as well,” Folkestad said.
Fourteen schools and 107 students competed in Minneota, where they competed in three rounds with a final round to mimic the state tournament format.
Luverne finished in seventh place as a team with all nine students earning a medal, ribbon or rubber duck.
“They do this for fun,” Folkestad said. “The duck is in place of one or two places out (of the finals).”
In Minneota the LHS team members finished as follows:
•Jessika Tunnissen, second, informative speaking.
•William Johnson, third, original oratory.
•Brianna Kinsinger, fifth, creative expression.
•Elizabeth Mulder, fifth, informative speaking.
•Hannah Kempema, sixth, original oratory.
•Makayla Oechsle, sixth, discussion.
•Cassi Chesley, seventh, discussion.
•Ingrid Mostad and Macrina Reverts, ninth, dynamic duo.

Treat every alarm as real,” said Hills area fire chief Jared Rozeboom.
A Hills family avoided possible carbon monoxide poisoning, thanks to a CO detector’s alarm.
On Wednesday, April 5, the Hills Area Volunteer Fire Department received a call from a building contractor who was working in a Hills resident’s home.
The homeowner was concerned enough to call the contractor about the alarm.
“The contractor thought maybe it was dust and humidity that was affecting the alarm, but wanted us to check to be for sure,” Rozeboom said.
“Upon entry, our gas monitor went into alarm mode and indicated elevated levels of CO.”
The home’s heating system was the source of the carbon monoxide.
No one was injured or hurt from breathing in CO produced during the furnace’s burning of fossil fuel.
“These stories don’t make the headlines or even the local town gossip,” Rozeboom said. “I wanted to draw your attention to a few things that kept this story from becoming a tragedy.”
Rozeboom said there were two reasons last week’s incident didn’t have a tragic ending.
First, the home had multiple working carbon monoxide detectors.
Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless toxic gas that is released in the process of burning fossil fuels when not enough oxygen is present for efficient burning.
“With propane and natural gas becoming so prevalent in our communities for heating and cooking, it is only a matter of time before many of us encounter CO in our homes,” he said.
The second reason was the homeowner and contractor took action and called the fire department when the CO alarm sounded.
“One can only fathom the tragedy that could have unfolded over the next few hours as the family went to bed, unaware that a ‘silent killer’ awaited them,” Rozeboom said.
The first signs of carbon monoxide poisoning are subtle.
Flu-like symptoms —mild headaches, dizziness, fatigue or nausea — are the first poisoning effects that lead to confusion, irritability, impaired judgment and memory and coordination issues.
Carbon monoxide affects people differently depending on gas concentrations, exposure levels and health status.
“If early signs are ignored, a person may lose consciousness and be unable to escape danger,” Rozeboom said.
When the detector indicated carbon monoxide in the home, Hills volunteer firefighters immediately opened doors and windows to remove the gas. The family was displaced from the home until the furnace was fixed.
Rozeboom recommends these safety measures for all residents:
•Install multiple carbon dioxide detectors with constant digital level readouts. Don’t choose devices with combined smoke and CO detection.
“The readout indicates how many parts per million are in the atmosphere. If the digital readout begins to show even minor levels of CO, something is wrong,” Rozeboom said.
•Test the devices monthly and replace the entire device every seven years, or as often as the manufacturer recommends. Change batteries twice a year in battery-powered detectors.
•Take action when the alarm sounds and evacuate everyone from the home immediately, leaving the door open on the way out of the house. Call 9-1-1 from a neighbor’s home or a cell phone once safely outside.
“By sharing this story, we hope you will take these simple steps to protect yourself and your family from a very real danger of exposure to CO,” Rozeboom said.
“This story could have had a much different outcome, but because of a working CO alarm and the actions of a few people, this was a tragedy averted.”

Luverne City Council members acted at their March 28 meeting to finance development of the Lopau Housing Addition.
They approved a resolution issuing $1,720,000 in general obligation improvement bonds to make street and utility improvements to the development that will accommodate 24 residential lots.
Northland Securities Inc., Minneapolis, is the city’s independent municipal adviser authorized to sell the bonds by competitive negotiated sale.
Financing proposals will be received on the morning of May 9 for consideration at the City Council’s meeting that evening.
The estimated “true interest cost” is 3.56 percent, based on the city’s current "AA-" rating by Standard and Poor’s.
The Luverne Economic Development Authority owns the lots and will host a public hearing later this year to set lot prices and establish protective covenants.
The lots will be on the market in 2023 and will be available for new home construction in 2024.
LEDA will use a combination of cash reserves and the revenue from lot sales to make bond payments, in addition to special assessments on the new properties and property tax levies.
 
Construction
Henning Construction of Adrian was the low bidder for the project at $1,480,513.80 (nearly $270,000 lower than the engineer’s estimate of $1.75 million).
Six bids were submitted, ranging from Henning’s low bid to the highest at $2,032,842.
The utility and infrastructure construction project includes an 8-inch sanitary sewer main and 6- and 12-inch water mains to serve the 24 residential lots.
Nineteen lots will be designated for single-family homes and five will be multi-family lots for twin homes (10 units on the north end).
Construction of infrastructure and utilities will start this spring and should be substantially complete this fall.
The existing property will be graded to accommodate a variety of houses, which include slab on grade structures, walk-out basements, garden window basements and full basements.
Lots will be accessed by 36-foot-wide asphalt streets, and drainage will follow curb and gutters, drainage swales in backyards and a storm sewer system that outlets into a detention basin on the east side of the extended North Walnut Avenue.
The detention basin will retain a portion of storm water on site that will drain through a filter before out-letting upstream of Poplar Creek and will reduce the proposed runoff flow rate.
 
Background
In the fall of 2020, the city paid Lynn Lopau $661,500 for 10 acres of land — $475,000 for the house, garage and two acres, and $186,500 for the rest of the eight acres, including two outbuildings.
After remodeling and updating the home, the city later sold the house, garage and two acres for $498,000 to Greg and Janet Burger.
 
Future housing needs
According to remarks in the feasibility study for the Lopau Addition, “It is imperative that new lots are available to meet current needs and attract others to the city of Luverne.”
That assumption is based on projected growth and limited residential lots available for sale in the city.
“The city of Luverne is continuing to grow as it is a clean, safe, well-maintained city with an excellent school system and medical network,” the feasibility report states.
“New businesses continue to choose the city of Luverne as their home, and existing businesses are expanding to meet growing needs. As the population of the city of Luverne continues to rise, the tax base continues to grow, and residents spend their money locally to support local businesses, all of which benefits the community.”

Meetings
Sanford Luverne Pink Ladies will meet at 1:30 p.m. Monday, April 17, at Sanford Luverne Medical Center. Note the change of date. Contact Sharon Zinnel, 507-227-3821, with questions.
MS Support Group will meet at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 18, at Pizza Ranch in Luverne. All persons with MS, family and friends are invited. Call 283-2069 or 283-2964.
 
SAIL classes in Hills
SAIL classes meet in Hills Monday and Thursday mornings now through June 22.
The classes, Stay Active and Independent for Life, improve strength and balance. They meet from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at Game Plan 4 Hope, 312 W. 3rd St. in Hills. There is no cost to attend, but pre-registration is required by calling volunteer class leaders Carol Gerhke, 507-220-1116, or Nelva Behr, 507-962-3413.
 
Mobile dental clinic in Luverne April 13
The mobile dental clinic will be in Luverne Thursday, April 13, at ATLAS of Rock County on Maple Street in Luverne. (Note the new location, and use the Community Room entrance.)
This clinic, organized by #Luv1LuvAll's Rock County Oral Health Task Force, provides dental care for adults and children ages 0 to over 100. Call 612-746-1530 to schedule an appointment. All forms of insurance are accepted.
 
Blue Mounds Birding April 15
The Blue Mounds State Park naturalist will offer Blue Mounds Birding from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday, April 15, at the picnic shelter for a program about migrant songbirds and how to identify birds in the wild.
After some background information we will set out on the trail for a short half mile hike to practice your new skills. *Come prepared with sun and insect protection as well as good walking shoes. Bring your binoculars if you have them. All ages welcome. 
 
Pro-life rally
April 17
A pro-life rally will be at 7 p.m. Monday, April 17, at Southwest Christian in Edgerton. Don Parker, director of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, Minneapolis, will speak about the work of his organization. Call 507-283-2219 with questions.
 
Blood drive April 18
The American Red Cross will accept blood donations from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 18, at Living Rock Church on East Main Street in Luverne. To schedule an appointment call 1-800-733-2767 or visit RedCrossBlood.org and enter LuverneMN.
 
Remember Rally sponsors event for emergency responders
A “Trauma and Mental Health” conference for emergency responders will be Thursday, April 20, at Pizza Ranch in Luverne. Professionals will talk about mental health, PTSD and suicide prevention for an audience of invited law enforcement officers, firefighters, EMS, clergy and counselors in Luverne and surrounding communities.
Pre-register by texting Diane Sherwood, 507-920-5349, or email promos@iw.net.
The movie, Break Every Chain,” will be shown that night at the Palace Theatre at 7 p.m. as a fundraiser for Luverne first responders.
 
LWML Spring Rally April 22
The Pipestone Zone Lutheran Women's Missionary League Spring Rally will be Saturday, April 22, at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Pipestone.
Registration is at 9 a.m. with coffee and rolls. Guest speaker is the Rev. Dr. Armand Boehme on the topic, “I am spiritual, but not religious. Millenials and the church."
Gifts from the Heart are personal care items for the Pipestone County Hospice. Lunch will follow program. Call Linda Wenzel, 507-220-8194.
 
A.C.E. starts ‘Matter of Balance’ classes April 24
A.C.E. of Southwest Minnesota will offer a new six-week round of “Matter of Balance” classes starting Monday, April 24, at the Magnolia Post Office. The classes will continue meeting at 1 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays through May 17. There is no cost, but re-registration is required and donations are accepted.
Call Linda, 507-283-5064, or Connie (507) 220-3584 or online at   https://yourjuniper.org/Classes/Register/3978
 
State park naturalist offers programs April 29
The Blue Mounds State Park naturalist will offer two programs on Saturday, April 29, at the picnic shelter.
“Predator vs Prey,” from 10 to 11 a.m. is designed for ages 6-12, but all ages are welcome. From the smallest insect to the largest fish in the river, every animal plays a role in the ecosystem.
“Beavers: Nature’s Engineers,” from 3 to 4 p.m. is about America’s largest rodent. Discover how these critters use unique adaptations to impact the landscape. The program will conclude with a short walk to the creek to look for beaver activity. 
Contact park staff at bluemounds.statepark@state.mn.us or 507-283-6050 with questions.
 
Registration opens for 4-H camps in June
Youth who have completed grades 3-6 can attend one of two residential camps at Lake Shetek June 19-21 and June 21-23.
4-H staff and high school youth counselors lead activities, small group discussions and outdoor activities during the camps.
Registration is open until May 10. Contact the Rock County Extension Office, 507-283-1302, or mnnext-rock@umn.edu.
 
Community Ed
Community Education will offer the following classes in the next few weeks. Call 507-283-4724 to register.
 Participants in grades 5 through adult can reserve time with an artist in Open Studio two-hour blocks of time on April 15. Fee is $25 and covers all materials, glaze and firing.
Registration is open for Discovery Time Preschool for ages 3-5 half-day classes during the 2023-24 school year. Age is determined as of September 1 of present school year. Free or reduced rates are available if income guidelines are met.
 
SAIL classes in Beaver Creek
SAIL classes meet in Beaver Creek Monday and Wednesday mornings now through May 24.
The classes, Stay Active and Independent for Life, improve strength and balance. They meet from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. in Beaver Creek City Hall in Beaver Creek. There is no cost to attend, but pre-registration is required by calling Linda Wenzel, 507-283-5064.
 
Free tax preparation at library
AARP volunteers will offer free tax preparation for low-income individuals and seniors at the Rock County Library on Mondays starting Feb. 13 through April 15.
Call 507-449-5040 for appointments. Bring documents, including last year’s tax return and a form of identification to document social security number. Tax returns for 2021 will be prepared if requested.
 
Library Happenings
For more information about library happenings, call 507-449-5040 or email rockcountystaff@gmail.com.
Ag Trivia at Take 16 takes place Thursday, April 6, in partnership with the Rock County Farm Bureau and Rock Nobles Cattlemen. Burgers will be served starting at 5:30 p.m. and trivia begins at 7 p.m.
Skally Line will perform old-time stringband music and share tales about Minnesota at 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 12.
Books on Tap takes place at 6:30 p.m. the first Monday of each month at Take 16 in Luverne.
Story Time with Bronwyn is at 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays and 10 a.m. Fridays now through April 28. Stories and make-and-take crafts are the same at either event.
The 50 State Challenge for adults and older teens is currently underway where patrons are encouraged to read a book set in one of each of the 50 states through Jan. 1, 2024.
Trivia Night is at 7 p.m. the first Thursday of every month at Take 16 in Luverne. Team registration begins at 6 p.m.
Reminiscence Kits are available featuring various topics such as gardening, pets, baking, sewing, farming and hunting. The kits are designed to use with a loved one experiencing memory loss, encouraging the loved one to open up about activities they once loved in the past.
STEAM kits are also available checkout. Motion, lights, hydropower, robotics and magnets are among the kits.
 
Community Ed announcements
Community Education will offer the following classes in the next few weeks. Call 507-283-4724 to register.
ECFE Classes for children ages 0-5 years and parents offers information and support to parents and provides activities for parents and children to explore together through classes that meet once a week throughout the school year. 
New Residents: Census Information Needed for Preschool Children. Call 507-283-4724 with information for children ages 0 to kindergarten. The school district uses the information for planning purposes, mailing out information on school events, including the state-mandated Preschool Screening for all 3-year-old children.
 
Food Shelf evening hours
The Rock County Food Shelf is now open for an additional evening shift from 5 to 6 p.m. the first and third Thursdays of the month. Call Mary at 507-227-5548 or Katie at 507-227-3531.
 
A.C.E. respite care available, volunteers needed
A.C.E. of SW Minnesota (A.C.E.) offers respite care services in Rock County for those needing a break from caring for a loved one.
The respite program offers short-term (1-3 hours), temporary care for families and caregivers by providing a brief period of reprieve from the daily cares they provide to their loved one.
Volunteers provide non-professional supportive services to caregivers to give them time for themselves, relieve their stress and help them remain healthy.
Respite care volunteers are also needed. Trained A.C.E. volunteers provide respite care to family caregivers of adults age 60 and older who are suffering from long-term health conditions.
Contact Linda Wenzel at 507-283-5064 or ace.rock@co.rock.mn.us.

Friends, family and the Luverne Area Chamber celebrated a ribbon-cutting Friday afternoon for Cardinal Moving, a business created by four Luverne High School students, Adam Ask, Marcus Vortherms, Marcos Diaz and Zach Overgaard. The new business assists area residents in moving household furniture, appliances and other items.

The financial condition of Southwest Health and Human Services continues to improve, six years after the agency had no money in the budget reserve.
Director Beth Wilms told Rock County commissioners at their April 4 meeting that reserves at the end of 2022 totaled $10.5 million.
“As all of you recall, I came on board in July 2017 and we were not financially healthy,” she said. “There were concerns from our counties and our community partners about stability and our viability.”
SWHHS now has four months of financial reserves. State auditors recommend five to six months.
“We are at a good place,” said Lisa DeBoer, SWHHS director of business management. “We are so close.”
In 2017 SWHHS had no money in budget reserves and faced a possible budget shortfall of $2 million the following year.
Wilms implemented several budget-tightening measures, including a hiring freeze in 2018.
“We’ve found public health positions are hard to fill and we have had turnover in child protection services,” DeBoer said. “Currently to date, we have nine open positions and have been holding there for the past couple of months.
SWHHS employs 232 currently.
In 2017 at its peak, 247 people worked for the six-county agency.
Essential and non-essential services are scrutinized to stay within budget.
Non-essential grant programs are closely reviewed for staff sustainability, especially after the grant sunsets. Wilms said since 2017, grant programs have been kept at a minimum, helping the agency’s bottom line.
“As an organization, we are pretty bare,” she said. “At the end of the day, we are not doing too many things that are non-essential.”
She said the focus is on one goal: “What we want is self-sufficient, strong families.”
The agency’s budget for 2023 is $34 million to provide the social services in Rock, Pipestone, Lyon, Murray, Lincoln and Redwood counties.
Rock County will pay $1.794 million this year for human services, public health and mental health.
 
Mental health services stay the same for now
Wilms said her agency continues to develop a network of third-party counseling services for eligible Rock County residents.
Previously, Rock County contracted mental health services only through the Southwestern Mental Health Center (SWMHS) in Luverne.
The 30-year exclusive SWMHS contract was terminated last year after SWMHS had asked for nearly $1 million to provide counseling services to local income-eligible residents.
Pipestone County followed suit in dropping the exclusive counseling services with SWMHS.
Previously both counties paid a combined $400,000 for mental health services through Southwestern Mental Health.
Wilms said as the third-party network is developed, many counseling services continue with Southwestern Mental Health in order to gather more data.
The one-year contract agreement between SWHHS and SWMHS is at or below the $400,000 Pipestone and Rock counties paid jointly in 2021.
The contract stipulates that Southwestern Mental Health report on the number of the clients served in each county, the service provided and billing information.

V&M Locker, Leota, recently received several awards during the Annual Minnesota Association of Meat Processors Convention March 17-18
The local meat locker received first place of 14 entries for the “Kid’s Choice Hot Dog Award,” chosen by children who attend the convention with their parents.
V&M products also fared well in a product show where meat processors from across the state can enter their products in 26 different categories and are judged by experts in the meat industry.  
The Leota locker placed second out of 12 in the Ground and Formed Jerky categories. 
V&M was second out of 19 in the Specialty Small Diameter Sausage with its Jalapeno Cheddar Hotdogs.
It took third place out of 21 entries in the Bacon category.
Chad and Julie Ruiter, owners of V&M Locker, Leota, and Bethany Olsem, V&M’s sausage kitchen and retail meat manager, accepted the awards during the association’s 81st annual event at the River’s Edge Convention Center in St. Cloud.

Are you a procrastinator?
I know I am.
Dozens of household and work-related tasks go uncompleted or finished at the very last minute.
Procrastination drives me crazy, and it’s become a habit I am determined to break.
To help me break the habit, my daughter sent me a podcast by Mel Robbins called “The Only Way to Stop Procrastinating (Based on Research).”
It’s worth a listen.
(Of course, the procrastinating me took seven days to finish the 30-minute recording.)
And then I listened to it again.
Here’s what I’ve learned:
•Procrastination is a habit you can break.
•There are two types of procrastination. One is conscious procrastination where you pause your task and come back to it. The second is destructive procrastination, the one I am determined to break.
•Destructive procrastination is triggered by stress. It has nothing to do with the actual task you want to complete.
Researchers, according to Robbins, define procrastination as the mind’s subconscious response to immediately feel better. Our mind’s fight-or-flight responses cause us to just freeze.
Unfortunately, what we’re stressed about is not easily identifiable.
Robbins likened stress to a backpack we wear. It’s behind us, not easily seen. We subconsciously think about what’s in our stress backpacks, and this preoccupation overflows to the tasks that need to be done.
I sometimes refer to these as “squirrel moments.” I am thinking about a task and then “squirrel” — oh look, my phone, let’s check out social media. Three hours pass and the task is still not complete.
We avoided the task because the squirrel moment made us feel better, the reason we sought to procrastinate in the first place.
We need to forgive ourselves when those squirrel moments happen. Feeling bad about our behavior only leads to more stress and more destructive procrastination.
Remember it’s OK to indulge in a squirrel moment — just make sure you return to what you wanted to do in the first place.
Robbins recommends the five-count method to stop our procrastination habits.
Tell yourself to focus just five seconds to the task and put all other thoughts out of your mind.
Tell yourself you’ll give seconds, which turns into five minutes or an hour, and soon the task is done.
And you feel better because things are getting done or, even better, things are completed.
That’s what occurred with this column. I devoted five seconds to typing the first few sentences, and that has led to a completed task in 45 minutes.
Are you ready to end your destructive procrastination?
Begin now. In 5-4-3-2-1.

April is National Safe Digging Month and CenterPoint Energy encourages customers to call 811 in advance about projects such as installing a garden, fence, pool or water sprinkler system. 
Digging without knowing the location of underground utilities can result in serious injury or death, service disruptions and costly fines or repairs.
Hitting underground natural gas, electric, communications, water and sewer lines while digging can have a major impact on communities and businesses.
Making a free request before digging at www.811beforeyoudig.com or by calling 811 can help maintain the safety of everyone who digs, as well as utility services in their communities.
“It is essential that anyone who plans to dig, regardless of how shallow the project might be, contact 811 beforehand to have buried utilities marked to allow for safe digging,” said CenterPoint Energy’s Shane Alexander.
“Callers should contact 811 a few days prior to the start of their digging project to give surveyors enough time to reach the site and mark the area.”
If a contractor is completing the project, it is recommended the homeowner ensure the area has been marked prior to the start of the project. The homeowner is advised to let the contractor know work cannot begin until the area has been marked.
If the property owner has privately owned lines servicing a sprinkler system or outdoor appliance, the property owner is responsible for ensuring these lines are marked.  
 CenterPoint Energy encourages everyone to take the following steps when planning a digging project:
•Always contact 811 a few days before digging, regardless of the depth or familiarity with the property. 
•Plan ahead. Make a free 811 request on Monday or Tuesday for work planned for an upcoming weekend, providing ample time for the approximate location of lines to be marked.
•Confirm that all lines have been marked. 
•Consider moving the location of your project if it is near utility line markings. 
•If a contractor has been hired, confirm that the contractor has contacted 811. Don’t allow work to begin if the lines aren’t marked. 
Callers to 811 will be connected to a local center that will communicate it to local utility companies.
Professional locators will then visit the dig site to mark the approximate location of underground utility lines with spray paint, flags or both.
Once a site has been accurately marked, it is safe to begin digging around the marked areas.
 In the case of a hit pipeline, leave the area immediately. Once in a safe location, report the leak by calling the CenterPoint Energy emergency line at 800-296-9815.