CORNELIA — Things are beginning to get back to normal in Cornelia after an early-morning wreck resulted in a natural gas leak and the evacuation of 50 to 60 people.
“We had a single-car accident this morning on Myrtle Street off North Main Street,” said Cornelia Fire Chief Chad Dyer. “The vehicle crossed over the center of the road and struck 873 N. Main St., which is ABC Foods.”
It was that collision that resulted in a precarious situation for emergency responders and nearby residents and businesses.
“It hit an exterior wall and also hit a gas manifold, and an inch-and-a-quarter gas line that ruptured during impact,” Dyer said. “There were no injuries to the occupant, however the vehicle was stuck on top of the gas lines.”
Cornelia Fire Department personnel quickly set up apparatus and began the process of shutting down adjacent streets and evacuating homes and businesses in the affected area.
Atlanta Gas Light personnel responded to attempt to secure the gas and repair the leak, but were met with a dangerous complication.
“The gas leak had a little more sense of urgency than normal,” Dyer said. “We found out shortly after arrival that the laundry room located inside the ABC Foods, or the adjacent section to it, actually had an automatic ignition timer that runs the boilers inside the laundry area, and that ignition timer is set to go off at 10 every morning.”
Georgia Power Co. was called to shut down power to the immediate area.
“We were working with a tight timeline to get that power turned off so that automatic ignition timer would not ignite, because the building was saturated with natural gas,” Dyer said.
In addition to Cornelia Fire Department, Cornelia Police Department, Habersham County Sheriff’s Office, Habersham County Animal Care and Control, Cornelia Police Department Code Enforcement and Cornelia City Utilities responded to assist with closing streets and helping evacuees leave the area. Habersham Emergency Medical Services also provided an ambulance to stand by in the area in case needed due to the delicacy of the repair operation.
“We actually had North Main shut down from Camp Creek [Road] all the way to Farm & Garden at Stonecypher Street,” Dyer said. “And we eventually had to shut down Stonecypher Street, also. We probably evacuated approximately 50 to 60 people around the immediate area due to the hazards.”
Dyer said the majority of those evacuated were from homes in the immediate area, including Myrtle Street and Stonecypher Street, Dyer said. Some of the nearby businesses on North Main Street also were evacuated as a precaution.
“Red Cross was contacted to be on standby should the situation be any worse than what it was, and also to assist anybody that might have needed immediate attention at that point in time,” Dyer said.
Dyer said he is not aware of anyone who needed assistance from the Red Cross during the three-hour evacuation period.
Dyer is grateful to those who helped ensure the safety of the public Thursday morning.
“I’d really like to thank everybody that assisted us in remedying the situation, to turn an unfortunate accident into something that could have been a lot worse had we not gotten on the situation and had the resources to remedy it,” Dyer said.
The affected area, with the exception of Myrtle Street, reopened about 11:15 a.m.
“The gas company is still on the scene fixing the immediate repair area here,” Dyer said. “Power is still off at this time pending the gas company repair.”
