Broken Gas Pipe Empties Foothill
Tiffany Hsu is the assistant city editor. Contact her at thsu@dailycal.org.Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Category: News
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Comments (A delivery truck ruptured a natural gas pipe behind the Foothill residence hall on Northside yesterday afternoon, causing gas vapors to seep into the building and prompting an evacuation of all students inside the Foothill, La Loma and Stern residence halls.
A Mad Dog Express delivery truck lost control and rolled into a Pacific Gas and Electric Company gas pipe directly behind Foothill at the intersection of Cyclotron Road and Hearst Avenue at 1:01 p.m., said UC Police Lt. Douglas Wing. Students were quickly evacuated by dormitory staff and sent to wait near the Hearst Greek Theatre.
There were no reported injuries, Wing said.
UC police responded to a call from the university Housing and Dining Services and was immediately joined by the Berkeley Fire Department. PG&E engineers arrived soon afterwards, said Deputy Fire Chief David Orth.
PG&E engineers dug down to the ruptured line and cut off its gas flow at 3:50 p.m. The pipe was repaired at 6:30 p.m., said PG&E spokesperson Brian Swanson.
La Loma reopened at 2:35 p.m. and Stern and Foothill reopened between 5:15 and 5:35 p.m. after the fire department ensured the buildings were clear of gas.
The evacuation inconvenienced residents like sophomore Jessica Mintz, who said she was taking a shower at the time.
"I just wish I could get some clothes, get my iPod, though of course I don't want to risk my life for it," she said.
Housing officials said consistent fire drills allowed for a smooth evacuation.
"We practice evacuation because sometimes false alarms happen when people do it as a joke," said Salvador Henriquez, senior custodial supervisor for Foothill, Stern and Bowles. "We did pretty well, went through hallways, knocked on doors."
Students said they left quickly once they realized the situation was potentially dangerous.
"We knew it wasn't another burnt popcorn incident when they kept moving us farther away," said sophomore Christine Van Horn. "It's frustrating, but it's nice to know we were evacuated. It's better safe than sorry."
Albert Wang of The Daily Californian contributed to this report.
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