Brookfield Man Implored Police To Consider 'Gas Pipeline Syndrome' In Lanza Investigation
A little over two years before 12/14, Brookfield resident Steve Kohlhase was in Newtown, within relatively close proximity to the Yogananda Street neighborhood, including the residence where Adam Lanza was beginning to exhibit increasingly concerning behavioral changes.
Cryptically, just 48 hours before the then highly reclusive 20-year-old murdered his mother who lay sleeping in that residence, and drove a few miles to his former elementary school to perpetrate one of the worst mass shootings in American history, that same Brookfield resident was dispatching an agitated e-mail to federal energy regulators concerning the same issue that brought him to Newtown two years earlier.
Among the more than 7,000 images, audio files, videos and documents released by Connecticut State Police on Friday is a nondescript subfile marked "0030290." It contains three multi-page documents that have received little or no attention compared to reams of investigatory data from the 12/14 crime scenes, incident responders, witness testimonies, and about the shooter himself.
The "0030290" file also contains a letter from Mr Kohlhase, sent to State Police investigators about six weeks after the shooting, reflecting his conviction that a low frequency audio phenomenon he believes is generated by a nearby high volume gas pipeline, could have had something to do with the behavior the shooter was exhibiting in the months, days and hours leading up to that devastating event.
While law enforcement officials at numerous local, state and federal agencies fielded calls and correspondence from countless conspiracy theorists in the days following 12/14, the information provided by Mr Kohlhase surfaced as one of, or the only item of collateral observation deemed appropriate for inclusion in the final state police reporting.
In his February 5, 2013 letter to police investigators, Mr Kohlhase writes in part: "For over 3 years western Connecticut has been inundated with a bewildering low frequency noise and vibration problem that most are unaware of and certainly being over looked by many. Besides my own personal issues with it, my wide encompassing research to bring attention to the problem suggests far greater reaching consequences than just annoyance."
He said the problem is "caused by Infrasonic Low Frequency Noise (ILFN) sound waves creating various conditions inside dwellings that at times make those sensitized to it become distressed, both mentally and physically." A source in Mr Kohlhase's reference material also refers to the condition as "Gas Pipeline Syndrome."
Mr Mr Kohlhase said the problem is known as "The Hum," and his research validates it occurrence in Connecticut as well as locations throughout the nation.
"I started sensing it in late 2009 and documented a growing number of others as well in CT and the nation," he continued. "I need to bring to your attention data from Lanza's neighborhood I collected in that area on September 24, 2010 used to understand the extent of where the hum is occurring."
Mr Kohlhase included this data in an information package to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on December 12, 2010. Additionally, he notified FERC by email on December 6 and 12, 2012, of increases of horrendous low frequency hum for the days prior to the tragedy.
"The location and intensities I observed in that neighborhood as well as certain actions of Adam Lanza brought out in the media raise concerns that researchers have greater unappreciated the disastrous effects of long term exposure to these type conditions on fragile people," Mr Kohlhase continued.
He told investigators that the low frequency hum is occurring throughout the nation.
"It is an understudied, rapidly worsening environmental stressor," Mr Kohlhase wrote. "The focus of my work throughout western Connecticut are the Right of Ways of buried high pressure natural gas lines, of which one of those is less than 1,500 feet from Lanza's home where a pipeline 'loop' was added prior to the manifestation of the hum."
The completion of the new pipeline loop was the reason Mr Kohlhase visited the neighborhood in 2010. On January 20, 2013 he said he revisited the area and reaffirmed the sound waves throughout the surrounding neighborhood.
"It is typical that only one individual in a house hold is severely affected, with many neighbors saying they aren't aware of it," he continued. "Sensitized people mostly perceive it in the same way, as an idling diesel engine, some as a high pitch bizz (sic) mimicking tinnitus."
Mr Kohlhase said other symptoms are uncomforting ear pressure, tingly floor vibrations and health issues commonly claimed as chronic fatigue syndrome bad enough to affect fragile people. He said "99 percent of the time the hum cannot be sensed outside of a building making this a very elusive problem to solve.
"It can be heard inside a parked car though," Mr Kohlhase stated. "At times the conditions are so right and so intense to cause surface puddles to vibrate and pool water to vibrate or induce standing waves like an earthquake."
Mr Kohlhase said his concerns had been communicated over and over asking for assistance in multiple filings to FERC and most recently in a number of filings in October and November 2012.
He told investigators that "remembering after the tragedy my visit there in September 2010, I realized data may be important to the investigation team for something they may not be considering":
*One can see the hum was occurring in that neighborhood for over 2 years prior to the tragedy on December 14, 2012.
*One can also see the week before December 14 the hum intensity was horrendous in Brookfield which is indicative of Lanza’s neighborhood.
*One can see the home's location is close to one of the studied gas system lines.
*One can also see it is still active in our neighborhoods.
He closes saying: "The effects of it on Lanza need further investigation in this case by professionals in many fields. This entire field dealing with excessive exposure to this 'Hum' is only being appreciated by a few, and lacks a concerted effort by medical, behavioral, environmental, psycho acoustic, etc. professionals.
Mr Kohlhase adds that, "This unfortunate tragedy needs to be the tipping point to get attention to this matter. I believe contacting the State Police before others the most appropriate way to deal with this. I implore investigators to seriously consider this by engaging subject matter experts."
An accompanying 40-page reference document contains dozens of charts, maps and related documentation Mr Kohlhase asks to be included in the evidence file. There is no direct response to, or any documentation within the "0030290" file that shows police either contacted the Brookfield resident, or considered his information among their concluding narrative, except to include it within the documents released December 27.
This is a copy of the memo to State Police investigators sent by Broookfield resident Steve Kohlhase, reflecting his concerns that a low audio phenomenon he attributes to high volume gas pipeline activity near the Lanza home, may have contributed to exceedingly disturbing behavior exhibited by 12/14 shooter Adam Lanza in the months leading up to the devastating Sandy Hook School shooting.