Crews with FortisBC are working in the Royal Bay area of Colwood after reports of a natural gas leak on Monday morning, Jan. 28.
Repair crews were on scene within 30 minutes to deal with damage to a natural gas service line caused by a contractor working in the area.
The initial call was received by FortisBC at 8:30 a.m. and a customer service technician was on scene within 10 minutes to assess the situation and ensure safety, FortisBC said in a media release. Repair crews arrived at 9 a.m. to isolate the damaged section and degassify the line in the 3000-block of Sparrowhawk Road, near Royal Bay Secondary School.
There was no loss of service to nearby customers. Colwood Fire Rescue attended as well and assisted with traffic.
“Public and employee safety is the number one priority for FortisBC and we would like to remind the public that the majority of damages to our system are preventable,” Nicole Brown, corporate communications advisor for FortisBC said in the release.
“While we don’t know what happened in this case, it’s a good reminder to always obtain information on the location of buried gas lines and other utilities before work begins and follow safe digging practices. In this case, the contractor contacted us immediately when the line was damaged and we appreciate their quick action.”
The toll-free number for BC One Call is 1-800-474-6886.
rick.stiebel@goldstreamgazette.com
