Ruptured Gas Main Forces Reading Evacuations

READING (CBS) – Homes and businesses in Reading were evacuated Tuesday morning after a construction crew hit a gas line.

Reading firefighters said that at about 9 a.m. a construction crew that was working on a water main project with a backhoe when they hit a 6-inch gas main that was fed by a 10-inch high pressure gas main.

The rupture forced the evacuation of 200-250 Main Street.

National grid is on scene to fix the issue, which impacted 98 businesses and houses.

The road is shut down from Summer Ave. to Knolwood Road, which could impact rush hour traffic to Route 128.

No one was injured during the incident.