Downtown Jackson gas leak repaired
Emergency crews from Jackson Hole Fire/EMS and Lower Valley Energy acted quickly Wednesday morning to fix a leaking natural gas line to protect homes and schools in the North Jean Street area of Jackson.
The gas leak began at 7:40 a.m. after a contractor dug into a 4-inch line in front of a house under construction on North Jean Street. Upon reports to emergency dispatchers, Fire/EMS and Town of Jackson Police Department crews immediately began evacuating the one-block area around the leak. Within five minutes of the emergency responders’ arrival, Lower Valley crews were on the scene clamping the leak, said Incident Commander Capt. Tyler Dunn of Jackson Hole Fire/EMS.
Officials estimated that 20 to 30 people were impacted by the evacuation of a one-block area bounded by North Jean Street, Teton Avenue, Moran Street, and East Deloney Avenue. Emergency officials knocked on doors to alert residents. They found that many residents were not home or had already self-evacuated due to the strong smell of natural gas and the sound of the leak, which sounded like “a jet taking off,” Dunn said.
Once the leak was clamped and the gas began to dissipate, residents were able to return to their homes by approximately 8:30 a.m.
Jackson Elementary School on North Willow Street was temporarily closed due to the smell of gas when the leak was occurring, according to Teton County School District Information Coordinator Charlotte Reynolds. However, students and teachers were able to attend classes under normal operations at 8:30 a.m.
