Updated at 12:45 p.m. A gas leak at the construction site near Swedish Hospital triggered the evacuation of two buildings late this morning, including the building under construction. The hospital was not evacuated.
Seattle Fire says they discovered a gas leak near Tallman Ave. and Market St., and Puget Sound Energy is working on fixing it. We spoke with Terry White, the worker who was working on a the equipment that cut the pipe, and Eric Kelly who was helping on the ground. White tells us they were cutting concrete and there were supposed to be markings on the ground to indicate where not to dig. There were no markings on this spot as they cut the curb. When the two realized the line had been cut, Kelly says he ran inside where firefighters happened to be touring the facility for an inspection.
The leak was discovered at 11:30 a.m., and construction workers evacuated to the sidewalk while firefighters tested the air. Fire engines briefly blocked one lane of Market St. There are no injuries.
Reported gas leak at hospital construction site
Thank you for your excellent neighborhood coverage. Within 5 minutes of us noticing heliocopters hovering, you have information on why. You do so much to bring the community together and keep us informed–almost immediately. Thanks very much!
Glad to hear that firefighters were already nearby to respond; however, a poor oversight of whoever was responsible for making sure the sidewalk was clearly marked for construction crews. This could have been much worse!
Hey, I work at Swedish Ballard Med. Ctr. and it was a little scary to hear the “code yellow triage” directive over the intercom. Glad everyone is ok. As I left the building after hearing the about the leak next door and that was why there were so many firetrucks blocking the streets & the construction crew all seemed a little freaked out, I had to tell a Swedish Hosp. employee to stop smoking right in front of the building; didn’t he know there was a gas leak ?! Really…I kid you not.
there were no indicators marking where not to cut, so they just went ahead and tried to wing it?
Where NOT to cut… its not their fault someone forgot to say DONT CUT HERE!