UPDATE 4 p.m.
Atmos Energy reports all roads have reopened.
UPDATE 3:20 p.m.
Atmos Energy spokesman Chace Murphy says the leak from natural gas line was stopped at approximately 3:15 p.m. The College Station Fire Department received the report at 10:30 a.m.
Murphy says no customers lost service because the line has gas going in a northern and southern direction.
Murphy also thanked local law enforcement involved in routing traffic around the leak. Southbound freeway traffic was blocked from the Barron Road exit off the southbound freeway and the southbound service road was closed between Graham and Barron. Murphy says keeping motorists away is crucial to reducing the chance of igniting the natural gas that escaped.
Chace Murphy visits with WTAW’s Bill Oliver.
UPDATE 2:35 p.m.
Atmos Energy spokesman Chace Murphy says there was no customer loss from today’s natural gas line break in College Station.
UPDATE 12:30 P.M.
Bart Humphreys at the College Station says the natural gas line that was struck was a six inch feeder line that serves south College Station.
Humphreys says affected customers include those living and working in Pebble Creek, Castlegate, and Tower Point. The only evacuation was an employee of a self-storage business located behind the break in the 4000 block of the freeway.
Humphreys says an Atmos Energy repair crew is on the scene and it is estimated it will take 10 hours for a temporary line to be installed. The procedure is much like a coronary bypass where a new section will be installed to replace the portion that was struck.
Southbound freeway traffic will continue to be affected. The southbound service road will be closed between Graham and Eagle and the southbound exit at Barron will remain blocked until repairs are completed.
Bart Humphreys visits with WTAW’s Bill Oliver.
ORIGINAL STORY:
A natural gas line was hit by a College Station Utilities (CSU) crew late Saturday morning.
Bart Humphreys of the College Station Fire Department says this has affected freeway traffic.
The southbound freeway exit at Barron Road has been closed, along with the southbound freeway service road from Graham to Eagle.
Humphreys says Atmos Energy has been notified and a repair crew has been dispatched.
Authorities are monitoring air quality around the area of the break, and as of 12 noon there have been no evacuations. The only structure in the immediate area is a storage facility. And there is enough wind to help dissipate the escaping natural gas.
Humphreys says the CSU crew was replacing wooden power poles when the gas line was struck.
No one was injured and there was no ignition.