KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana |Gas leak has Shreveport street closed

Gas leak has Shreveport street closed

By Katrina Webber - email | bio

SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) - A gas leak at a construction site in southeast Shreveport has shut down a nearby street.   But Shreveport firefighters say there is no danger to people in surrounding neighborhoods.

District Fire Chief Randy Hodge says a crew pouring cement for a parking lot on Fern Street near E. 70th Street accidentally dug into an underground two-inch gas line around 4:30 a. m. Friday.

He says a stabilizer bar on the cement pourer went too far into the ground, causing the rig to be unsteady. The crew then brought in a backhoe to rectify the situation.

"They dug down to dig up the stabilizer bar and accidentally hit the gas main," Hodge said.

The crew told firefighters the gas line had recently been moved to that location and they didn't know it was there.

"This could be extremely dangerous under the right conditions, but things are in our favor right now," Hodge said. "None of the businesses right here are open."

Police and firefighters have shut down Fern Street in that immediate area until the leak is capped off.  Hodge said the street could be closed for a couple of hours, but the gas leak should be under control before businesses open in the area.

A crew with Centerpoint Energy is on scene to make those repairs.