At 9:20 Wednesday morning Kent Fire Department firefighters responded to a report of a natural gas line break just west of the West Valley Highway on South 277th Street. The gas leak resulted in the closing of South 277th Street between 58th Avenue South and the West Valley Highway. South 277th Street is a major east/west arterial connecting the valley and east hill with Interstate 5.
When firefighters arrived, they found a three-quarter inch high pressure natural gas line which had been broken by Puget Sound Energy subcontractors who had been working on service improvements in the area.
The gas line, which carried a pressure of approximately 250 pounds per square inch, shot natural gas and sediment from the hole high into the air. Fortunately, the prevailing wind blew from the north sending the lighter than air gas towards largely unpopulated parts of the valley. Firefighters checked nearby buildings to ensure that anyone in the area was safely evacuated. Because of the wind direction, the Smith Brothers Dairy, which occupies a large piece of land to the north of the break, was not evacuated.
After approximately two hours, PSE was able to shut off the supply of natural gas to the line and allowed the residual gas to dissipate. Because of the unique smell of natural gas, reports of the smell were called into 911 centers as far south as South 320th Street No one was injured in the incident and South 277th Street will remain closed until repairs are complete.
