A construction crew accidentally broke a natural gas line near San Diego State University today, prompting the evacuation of about a dozen nearby apartment residents for about 90 minutes.
Workers digging in a vacant lot at 55th Street and Lindo Paseo accidentally ruptured the 2-inch line about 7:15 a.m., San Diego Gas & Electric Co. spokeswoman April Sharp said.
The rupture did not cause a fire, a San Diego Fire-Rescue Department dispatcher said.
Police and firefighters blocked both streets, and Hardy Avenue, and helped about a dozen residents evacuate from a three-story apartment building as a precaution. Evacuees were allowed to wait in Peterson Gym until they could return home, San Diego police said.
Sharp said SDG&E crews got the gas line shut off by 8:40 a.m. and began making repairs.
Classes were unaffected, although students could not reach the campus on 55th Street for about 90 minutes, a campus police official said. Officers reopened the roads around 9 a.m.
