Hwy. 111 reopens after gas line ruptured

The Southern California Gas Company was working to repair a four-inch gas line that ruptured in an abandoned building in Indio Tuesday morning.

The building is located on Highway 111 near Shields Road, just a few blocks east of Jefferson Street. As a precaution, officials closed the highway for one block east and one block west of the gas leak for about an hour.

The gas leak was reported in the 804000 block of Highway 111 at about 8:50 a.m. Crews had the scene cleared at about 10 a.m.

Drivers were asked to avoid the area while crews worked to fix the line.

According to a release from Sergio Jiminez with the Southern California Gas Co., a third-party work crew damaged the medium pressure, plastic gas line while clearing a sewer line.

Fire officials said the reverse 911 system was used to notify residents in the area to shelter in place until further notice. No injuries were reported, Jiminez said in the release.

Officials said calling 811 will help avoid possible injury or damage to hidden gas lines or service interruption while digging. SoCalGas also encourages customers to know how to recognize and respond to a natural gas leak.

You can call 1-800-427-2200 if you ever have any concern.