Gas Leak Downtown

GAS LEAK

A gas leak in downtown Le Mars late Thursday afternoon caused evacuation of a downtown business and an apartment.  Le Mars Fire/Rescue Chief Dave Schipper says they were called to an alley behind the Pizza Ranch around 5 p.m. A concrete crew was removing pavement in the alley.  Firemen found gas in the basement of a nearby apartment.  Chief Schipper said monitoring equipment indicated the gas was concentrated enough to explode if accidentally ignited.  The apartment and the Pizza Ranch were evacuated as a precaution. Plymouth Street SW was closed and Mid-American Energy was called to shut off power to the buildings and render the gas leak safe.  Fire/Rescue and MidAmerican Energy crews secured the situation in about 90 minutes.  The gas was ventilated from the buildings. MidAmerican crews made repairs, and then restored gas service.  Chief Schipper said the incident was ruled an accident, when a buried gas line was struck during concrete removal.  There were no injuries.