Firefighters evacuate part of Marion after gas leak

CEDAR RAPIDS - Parts of a Marion neighborhood have been evacuated Thursday afternoon after road construction workers hit a gas line in the area.

MidAmerican Energy spokesman Tim Grabinski says contractors hit a two-inch high-pressure gas line around 2:30 p.m.. The break occurred in the area of Grand Avenue and South 11th Street. Construction workers are doing road work near an intersection in that area.

Grabinski says the broken line is venting gas, and firefighters are evacuating neighboring businesses. A worker at Foster's Heating and Air Conditioning in Marion says firefighters closed the Casey's General Store and the nearby Hawkeye Convenience Store. They were also evacuating a strip mall in that area.

MidAmerican says the severity of the break and the location of shutoff valves will determine how long it will take to stop the leak and repair it.

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