A major natural gas line leak was plugged Wednesday evening, and state Route 163 reopened, following the evacuation of 3,300 people and numerous workers from the heart of Mission Valley.
No one was hurt, but the hours-long freeway closure disrupted traffic throughout the central San Diego area. Temporary evacuation points were established at Riverwalk Golf Course and Fenton Marketplace.
The freeway was reopened and the evacuation orders lifted just before 8 p.m.
Gas leak is now controlled in Mission Valley. SDG&E crews are assessing damage to the pipe caused by a third-party contractor and will begin repairs tonight. Friars Road and SR 163 now open. More at https://t.co/S5mtOmSGtm pic.twitter.com/uupVTuMwUh
— SDG&E (@SDGE) March 8, 2018
Construction crews cut through a 20-inch-diameter gas line in Mission Valley at about 10:30 a.m., as they worked on widening the Friars Road overpass at Route 163. The cut was near the corner of Friars Road and Ulric Street.
The mishap sent gas billowing into the air, television news footage showed. Route 163 was closed between Interstates 8 and 805, causing traffic to spill onto other local freeways and surface streets and paralyzing much of San Diego.
About a half-hour later, San Diego police started closing Friars Road between the Fashion Valley Mall and Frazee Road, and the California Highway Patrol shut down the freeway soon after.
By about 2:45 p.m., close to 3,300 people from 1,100 homes had been told to evacuate, said Alec Philipp of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department. The entire Fashion Valley Mall was also evacuated, as well as numerous other nearby stores and offices.
The flow of gas wasn’t stopped until 6:15 p.m., according to Colleen Windsor of San Diego Gas and Electric.
“Our crews will now be assessing the damage to the pipe,” Windsor said.
— From Staff and Wire Reports