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Rossland gas leak prompts evacuation

Rosslanders can breathe easy now that a gas line break has been repaired.
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Emergency personnel was on standby in Rossland Wednesday when a gas leak forced evacuation of a city street.

Rosslanders can breathe easy now that a gas line break has been repaired.

A high-pitched whistling noise could be heard throughout downtown Rossland Wednesday afternoon as emergency crews and FortisBC workers strove to seal off a leak on a residential natural gas line.

A City of Rossland crew was working in an alley between First and Second avenues in upper Rossland when an excavator ruptured the gas line at nearly 2 p.m.

“Crews arrived on site and they ensured the scene was made safe and then they brought the gas under control at around 2:50 p.m. by stopping the flow of gas in the two-inch main,” Michael Allison, spokesperson for FortisBC, said Thursday.

“The pipeline was repaired and regasified at around 7:30 p.m. And then we began relights (to appliances) to six customers who were unfortunately affected.”

Regional fire worked closely alongside to ensure the safety of Rossland residents, according to Terry Martin, regional fire chief.

“Fifteen houses in the neighbourhood were cleared and a total of 10 Rossland residents were evacuated as a safety precaution,” he said.

Members were testing the atmospheres of evacuated houses for accumulated natural gas before allowing residents to return to their homes.

Customers are asked to do their research before digging by calling BC One Call to locate any underground utilities.