Yorktown, VA 23692
York County firefighters controlled a gas fire in Grafton on Sunday night for more than five hours, keeping 30-foot flames from spreading into the surrounding area as utility crews worked to turn off the line.
Firefighters with the York County Department of Fire and Life Safety arrived at the 100 block of Songbird Trail in the Grand Laurel neighborhood within minutes of the 8:15 p.m. emergency call. Upon arrival, firefighters saw flames 30 feet high shooting from an area behind a residence and soon discovered a gas line had ruptured and caught fire, said spokesperson Capt. Paul Long.
Lightning is likely the cause of the gas line rupture, as several nearby residents said they saw several bright flashes of lightning and “extremely loud” bursts of thunder before the fire began, Long said.
About 18 firefighters worked the fire, purposely keeping the fire going while spraying water to cool the nearest residence and the vegetation surrounding the flames, Long said.
“That’s standard procedure in this type of fire,” Long said. “It’s best because as long as the fire is going, we can see where the gas is. If you extinguish it completely, then you’ve got gas in the air that could inundate the entire neighborhood quickly.”
As firefighters kept the blaze under control, Virginia Natural Gas crews worked to locate the line and turn off the gas. Once the gas was secured, the fire crews allowed the residual gas on the line to burn out before leaving the scene around 1:30 a.m.
During the fire, about 20 residences were evacuated. None of the residents required county services, all choosing to either stay with friends or to stand behind the fire line to watch the crews work the fire. The home closest to the fire had minor damage to its vinyl siding. No other damage and no injuries have been reported.
Virginia Natural Gas crews are still on the scene to repair the line, Long said. The fire department has no further involvement in the incident.
