Residents returning home after Friday's gas leak in Lawrence

LAWRENCE, Mass. — Families affected by Friday's gas leak in Lawrence are back home Sunday morning.

Columbia Gas crews spent Saturday finishing up repairs and restoring service to more than 100 businesses and homes. The area of South Broadway was forced to evacuate early Friday morning after private contractors accidentally punctured a gas main.

The company tweeted Sunday morning:

As of 9 p.m. Saturday night, Columbia Gas has restored gas service to nearly all homes and businesses in South Lawrence affected by Friday's leak. Customers who were not home on Saturday for relights should call 1-866-388-3239 today for service to be restored. (1/2)
— Columbia Gas MA (@ColumbiaGasMA) September 29, 2019

We once again would like to apologize for the disruption this has caused our customers in South Lawrence. We also thank local and state officials and first responders for their partnership over the past two days as we worked to safely restore gas service to the area. (2/2)
— Columbia Gas MA (@ColumbiaGasMA) September 29, 2019

The leak came about two weeks after the one-year anniversary of the Merrimack Valley gas explosions.

"It's just still scary," said Amy Soltan, who returned to her home after evacuating. "It's been scary for the past year.

"I don't know what's going to happen next, I don't know whether to keep my gas on every night after I cook. I don't know whether to wake up in the middle of the night to walk around my house, to check to see if everything is OK. I can't get a peaceful sleep."

Around 3 a.m. Friday, reports first came in of a gas odor at South Broadway and Salem Streets in Lawrence. Columbia Gas crews responded, confirmed there was a leak and shut off electricity.

Columbia Gas says the gas valve that was closed Friday should have been disabled as part of pipeline reconstruction in 2018.

Anyone who wasn't home Saturday when Columbia Gas came around to relight meters can call them to schedule an appointment to have their service turned on.

>> Displaced residents staying in hotel rooms following early morning gas leak

>> Lawrence gas leak: 'Columbia Gas has blown me up again'

>> Lawrence gas leak: City officials confirm human error caused gas leak

Cox Media Group