Plano Residents Evacuated Due To Gas Leak
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PLANO (CBSDFW.COM) - Emergency crews with the Plano Fire Department, Plano Police Department and Atmos Energy were all investigating a gas leak near the intersection of Spring Creek Parkway and Alma Drive in Plano. The incident happened at around 7:00 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning.
One resident reported a strong odor in the area. Crews detected the leak in underground sewer lines.
Due to the leak, authorities were forced to evacuate about 100 residents from around 79 homes along two streets. A temporary shelter was set up for them, but the incident certainly interrupted their Thanksgiving meal plans.
According to Atmos Energy, crews located the source of the gas leak and eliminated it at about 1:20 p.m. The crews were last seen doing air tests after clamping the leak.
The City of Plano tweeted at approximately 2:40 p.m. that residents were able to return to their homes after being evacuated.
The evacuation has been lifted. Affected families are free to return home and there are no further road closures.
— City of Plano (@cityofplanotx) November 24, 2016
The shelter is located at the Plano Senior Recreation Center, 401 West 16th Street. Lunch is being provided. The city stated on Twitter that the evacuations were made "out of abundance of caution" and that residents would be returned to their homes as soon as possible.
Some of the residents were seen lingering around the scene, bundled up to protect themselves from the chilly temperatures on Thursday morning. Fire crews also shut down the intersection and its surrounding streets.