A worker performing maintenance accidentally knocked the cap off a 6-inch natural gas line at the intersection of 41st Street Southeast and A Street Southeast Wednesday morning.
The incident prompted the evacuation of nearby businesses and snarled traffic as Puget Sound Energy crews moved in to cap the leak. Roads within a 1/8 of a mile area remained closed as of 3 p.m. and evacuation orders stayed in place.
The closed streets are as follows:
• A Street Southeast at 37th Street Southeast to the North and at Lakeland Hills Way to the South
• 41st Street at A Street Southeast to the East and C Street Southwest near Ellingson Road
Barring unforeseen complications, PSE crews expect to cap the leak by 4 p.m.
The Valley Regional Fire Authority responded to a 911 call received from a construction crew at about 11:30 a.m., stating that a gas line, temporarily capped, had broken at the cap, injuring a worker and causing natural gas to flow freely.
VRFA crews treated the construction worker for minor facial injuries and he was transported to Highline Hospital.
“It’s unclear whether the cap blew off and hit the city worker in the face or compressed air hit him in the face,” Auburn Police Sgt. Scott Near said Wednesday afternoon.
Firefighters stood by as a precaution.
