Chattanooga firefighters look on as technicians with the Chattanooga Gas Company work to shut off the gas leak
photo by Bruce Garner
Business and traffic along Market Street in downtown Chattanooga were disrupted for more than an hour Friday morning when a construction crew accidentally broke into a buried natural gas line.
The Chattanooga Fire Department responded to 1467 Market Street around 9:30 a.m. with several fire companies, and after confirming that gas was leaking from the 1¼ -inch line, they immediately shut down the street in both directions. Battalion Chief Jeff Eldridge said firefighters evacuated several businesses and apartments in the immediate area as a precaution.
While the evacuation was in progress, help was requested from the Chattanooga Gas Company.
At approximately 10:36 a.m., technicians with the gas company had successfully shut the leak off. No one was injured. Not long after the leak was shut off, the northbound lanes of Market Street were re-opened to traffic. The southbound lanes had to remain closed for a while until repairs were made on the gas line.