What started out as a potentially catastrophic situation on Monday was essentially over in a matter of a couple of hours, with nobody harmed.
A gas leak at the intersection of Highway 100 and Roberta Street in New Haven prompted officials to close down a section of the highway and evacuate about a two-block radius.
"A contractor was replacing a water line on Roberta Street and hit a gas line," said New Haven Natural Gas Superintendent Chris Kemper.
The contractor, Mid State Pipeline, hit the marked gas line on Roberta St. and pulled it from the connection to the main line on Highway 100.
After a call went out around 10:30 a.m., police shut down Highway 100 from Highway C to Miller Street. It stayed closed for about two hours.
"Mainly for our own people's sake," Kemper said. "To prevent them from getting run over."
Workers with the gas department and emergency personnel quickly went to work assessing the situation.
"Our biggest concern was getting readings in the sewer system of natural gas," said Capt. Jeff Buchheit with the New Haven/Berger Fire Protection District.
See this week's Leader for the full story.
