
A natural gas leak was contained Thursday afternoon after a main was punctured during a routine excavation project east of the Bioengineering Building on the University of Wisconsin campus.
According to Findorff Project Manager Jason Mattila, the break occurred around 11 a.m. after a waterline broke during routine utility work by a subcontractor.
“During the excavation, the local waterline broke. The waterline filled the trench and eventually eroded part of the side of the trench. A chunk of earth fell onto the gas main, causing that gas main leak,” Mattila said. “It’s one of those unfortunate things that happened. It doesn’t happen very often, but it did.”
The UW Police Department arrived on the scene soon afterward and evacuated several academic and research buildings in the area, Lt. Michael Newton said.
“The overall response to the incident went very well,” Newton said. “Our department felt that all agencies worked very well with one another. This made the incident run smoothly and assisted with orderly evacuation of the facilities surrounding the area.”
Police officers rerouted motor and foot traffic while Findorff worked to remove water from the trench, allowing the pipe to be repaired.
Areas rerouted included Babcock — where the leak was located — along with Linden Drive, University Avenue and Henry Mall. Delayed traffic caused the rerouting of several bus lines.
The Biochemistry Building, Biochemistry Building Extension and Horticulture Hall were evacuated, leading to the cancellation of classes. Police officers and university administrators turned students away at the scene.
The leak was contained by 12:10 p.m., and traffic was allowed back into the area. Students and faculty were able to return to their buildings soon after.
An e-mail and text alert was deployed to warn of the leak and ask pedestrians to avoid the area, although several students reported receiving the text up to an hour after the incident.
“Gas leaks are always dangerous. Due to this, police and fire personnel do not take any chances, and we always take every precaution we can to keep our community safe. In this case, both the UW Police and Madison Fire responded in the way we did to make sure no one was injured or hurt,” Newton said.
Natural gas is a fossil fuel used as a major source of electricity in the United States. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, it is the leading cause of carbon monoxide deaths in the U.S.
An odorant is usually added to the naturally colorless, odorless gas to allow its detection when a leak occurs.
Madison Gas and Electric and the Madison Fire Department also arrived on the scene.
UW officials said as of press time no damage estimates are available, although several basements in the area were subject to minor flooding. Classes will resume as usual today.