Between 75 and 100 homes were evacuated in Walkerton on Thursday because of a gas leak in the area of Jane?and Gibson Streets.
Fire departments from Walkerton, Hanover and Mildmay, as well as Bruce County Emergency Medical Services and South Bruce OPP responded to the call at 11:17 a.m., when a crew doing some directional drilling hit a three-inch line. Fumes could be smelled throughout town, as far as  a kilometre away, according to a Cunningham Road resident.
Brockton Fire Chief Michael Rozario said the reason for the 12-block evacuation, wasn’t only to limit the danger of an ignition source, but also oxygen displacement.
He called the evacuation “quite substantial for a small town.”
The response team brought in a bus to transport evacuees to the Walkerton Community Centre, where about a dozen people gathered, according to arena staff.
The gas was shut off at approximately 2 p.m. by Union Gas, and firefighters checked for fumes in nearby buildings, and residents were allowed back in their homes by 3 p.m.
Rozario wasn’t sure what work was being done, but said the crew didn’t have their locates right.
South Bruce OPP media relations officer Cst. Kevin Martin wasn’t aware on Friday if any disciplinary action would be taken against the construction company.