116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Work at new library interrupted by broken gas line
A broken gas line halted work at the new Cedar Rapids Public Library Monday morning.
Cedar Rapids fire Battalion Chief Dave Brown said that contractors working on the southeast corner of the new library struck a small service gas line around 10 a.m. Monday. Brown said a crew staged on Fifth Avenue to quickly respond the event things “headed south.”
The library, slated to open late next month, was evacuated after the line was hit.
“They've got everybody out of there,” Brown said.
The incident closed down Fifth Avenue, as well as the Union-Pacific railroad.
Workers from MidAmerican Energy shut off the gas line at approximately 10:40 and fire crews left the scene.
Fire crews respond to a gas line leak at the construction site for the new Cedar Rapids Public Library Monday, July 22, 2013. (Lee Hermiston/The Gazette)
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