Repairs completed after gas leak causes hundreds in Hagerstown to evacuate
Repairs to a gas main in Hagerstown's South End were completed Wednesday morning after a Hagerstown Light Department contractor struck the main on Tuesday while replacing a utility pole, officials said.
Columbia Gas of Maryland workers finished repairing the 6-inch steel pipe around 4 a.m. Wednesday, allowing the last part of the closure area to be reopened, company spokesperson Russell Bedell said.
More:Mandatory evacuation lifted in Memorial Boulevard area due to gas leak
The evacuation, which lasted more than four hours on Tuesday, affected around 1,000 people, according to Hagerstown officials and a post on the city's Facebook page. The evacuation ended around 6:30 p.m.
Once the valves were turned off and the gas dissipated so repairs could be done, four customers were left without gas service while repairs were completed, Bedell said. Gas workers conducted safety checks for those customers around 6 a.m. Wednesday and relit their appliances.
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The evacuation included Bester Elementary School, which was evacuated for the second time in a week after a bathroom fire on Aug. 30.
Bester resumed its normal schedule on Wednesday, according to an email from Washington County Public Schools spokesperson Joe Copenhaver.
Who ruptured the gas line?
The incident was reported at 12:45 p.m. Tuesday on property across from a city public works office near West Memorial Boulevard and South Potomac Street, according to a Washington County 911 supervisor.
Everhart & Hoover, a Hagerstown Light Department contractor, was replacing an existing pole with a taller one when the contractor struck the gas line, according to an email from city spokesperson Wes Decker. The taller pole was to accommodate a request from Point Broadband, so the internet provider can string fiber in the area.
Nathan Fridinger, electric operations manager for Hagerstown Light, wrote in an email that Miss Utility was asked to check for underground infrastructure prior to the work, and "the status of the area was noted as Clear/No Conflict by all utility companies."
After The Herald-Mail left messages with Columbia Gas's spokesperson asking how much natural gas leaked and for a comment on the Miss Utility clearance, Bedell texted that there wasn't an estimate on the amount of leaked gas and that the incident is under investigation.
"Columbia Gas is performing a thorough investigation of all facts and actions surrounding this incident to determine the root cause, but that investigation has not been completed yet, so we cannot comment on specific elements of that investigation," he wrote in a follow-up text message.
A representative with Everhart & Hoover, based in Hustontown, Pa., could not immediately be reached Wednesday for comment.
"We wouldn't have any comment," Point Broadband spokesperson Taylor Nipper said. Nipper said no Point Broadband crews were digging in that area.
The evacuation affected a roughly six-block area, closing Memorial Boulevard from Frederick Street to about Surrey Avenue and South Potomac Street from Locust Point to Garlinger Avenue.
The Maryland Public Service Commission's engineering division was notified of the gas leak on Tuesday, spokesperson Tori Leonard emailed. There was not a formal investigation as of early Wednesday.
Wasn't Bester Elementary just evacuated last week?
This was the second time in a week that Bester Elementary students were evacuated.
A week ago Tuesday, the students were dismissed early due to a fire intentionally set by a juvenile in a second-floor bathroom. The sprinkler activated, causing water damage that kept the school closed the next day.
The city fire marshal's office ruled the fire arson and charges were to be filed against a juvenile suspect in the incident.
The fire damage was minimal, Decker wrote on Wednesday. The estimated cost of the damage was not yet available.
Due to the gas leak on Tuesday, students were evacuated to nearby Hager Park, where school system officials and emergency responders, including Hagerstown Police, watched over them until they could be picked up to go home. Parents could pick the children up early, while buses ran on their regular schedules, Decker wrote.
There are roughly 430 students enrolled at Bester, officials have said.
More:Bester Elementary to remain closed Wednesday after water damage from small fire
Intentionally set:Hagerstown Fire Department concludes Bester Elementary fire was result of arson
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Columbia Gas repairs gas leak that caused evacuation in Hagerstown
