St. Joe Center Road reopened after crews complete repairs for broken gas line

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) St. Joe Center Road was back open Wednesday morning between Maplecrest and Reed Road after a gas line was struck Tuesday afternoon around 1 p.m.

According to the Fort Wayne Fire Department, crews from NIPSCO took several hours to locate the source of the leak. Their goal was to reroute gas around the leak to prevent any service interruptions.

The gas main serves a large portion of northern Fort Wayne.

FWFD spokesperson Stacey Fleming said ten homes were evacuated near the gas leak. As of 10 p.m., residents were allowed to return to their homes because NIPSCO had sealed the gas leak.

The Red Cross was standing by to provide assistance to residents and help them find a place to stay overnight due to the nature of the work being loud in the area. Fleming said none of the evacuees required help from the Red Cross.

"We did call in Red Cross to assist those families. And fortunately, none of the families needed our assistance because they were able to get home," Fleming said.

Crews overnight repaired the 6-inch gas line. Crews had to dig a hole next to the roadway to replace the pipe and return service to normal.

A NIPSCO worker told overnight reporter Rod Hissong the goal overnight was to get the road open for morning school buses.

No injuries have been reported as a result of the leak.