A gas line was damaged early Friday morning at Shaw & Sixth, forcing the closure of Shaw between First & Sixth until Saturday.
Fresno Fire and PG&E held a news conference at noon to update the public on the status of the repair and potential danger.
Fresno Fire Chief Rob Brown said, "...energy has been shut down to several of the adjoining businesses and residences, evacuations remain in place, or police department is making sure people don't enter the area so that we don't have any potential ignition sources. However at this point, risk to public safety, because of the actions that have been taken, have greatly been minimized."
PG&E spokesman Denny Boyles says the plan is to allow the gas to flow until 8:00 p.m. Friday night, which is why Shaw will remain closed all day. He also said the contractor did not have a valid tag and did not follow the proper procedures before drilling.
The contractor was Atazz Technical Services out of Sacramento and was doing work for AT&T.
Boyles said they are going door to door checking for signs of gas at homes and businesses to determine which locations can have electricity restored.
Chief Brown said they are working with PG&E, police and hazmat to minimize risk and isolate the gas to allow some evacuations to be lifted.
Be advised that not only is Shaw closed between First and Sixth, but some traffic lights are out as well, so it's better to avoid the area and take a different route.
Be advised that not only is Shaw closed between First and Sixth, but some traffic lights are out as well, so it's better to avoid the area and take a different route.