Driver strikes gas line, east London, Ont. neighbourhood temporarily evacuated

London fire, police, and ambulance services responded to a home on the corner of Highbury Avenue and Magee Street on Monday after a car left the road and crashed into the side of the house, striking the gas line, and forcing the evacuation of local residents.

"There was no injuries from what we see. But we do have a very volatile situation with a gas line that we can't get shut off without the assistance of Enbridge Gas," explained Platoon Chief Gary Mosburger of the London Fire Department.

Enbridge Gas arrived to begin work on shutting off the system to the neighbourhood before beginning work on capping the severed line. The potential for a dangerous explosion — much like the Woodman Avenue incident in 2019 — was front of mind for responders.

“[It] as a lot of similarities. We have a natural gas meter that was struck with no indication that gas has been able to be shut off or at least start migrating within the home itself. So we take…precautions as we need to, to make sure that people are safe,” said Mosburger. “We've evacuated a lot of homes in and around the area where the home has been affected.”

London police are on scene in the area of Highbury Avenue and Calvin Street after a vehicle struck a home and a gas meter. April 17, 2023. (Source: Deb Lefaivre)

Deb Lefaivre and her daughter live across the street from the home, and she said it was only about five minutes after noticing the incident before they were asked to evacuate.

“I was in the kitchen and saw a police car make a U-turn, and I looked out and I saw a red car smacked into the house across the road,” she explained.

London police are on scene in the area of Highbury Avenue and Calvin Street after a vehicle struck a home and a gas meter. April 17, 2023. (Marek Sutherland/CTV News London)10 to 15 homes were evacuated, and hydro was cut off to the neighbourhood.

“Reducing any potential sparks or any ignition sources that could affect a possible explosion,” said Mosburger. “We've seen the ramifications of what that can look like and we obviously are taking every precaution necessary to obviously not have that happen here.”

The incident created a nightmare at the busy intersection of Highbury and Hamilton.

London police are on scene in the area of Highbury Avenue and Calvin Street after a vehicle struck a home and a gas meter. April 17, 2023. (Marek Sutherland/CTV News London)Residents were allowed back into their homes early Monday afternoon after crews finished monitoring gas levels.

No injuries were reported.

There is no word on if any charges will be laid in the incident.

— With files from CTV News London’s Kristylee Varley 

(Source: Google)