Five homes evacuated

Update 4:40 p.m.
Officials don’t know what caused methane gas to seep out of the ground causing the evacuation of five homes in North Stafford.

Gas crews, county and fire officials at a press conference Wednesday said they were working to find a solution to the problem and trying to locate the source of the gas. The utility company turned off services to the affected homes and that no one had gotten sick.

Those who had been evacuated could be back in their homes by tonight if utility companies gave the all clear, but it wasn’t clear if their utilities would be restored.

Weather and cold temperatures were a concern Wednesday as light snow was forecast to fall across the Potomac Communities tonight.

The affected townhomes are all built on concrete slabs, and sit across the street from an active construction site.

North Stafford, Va. –– Fire and rescue officials and representatives from Columbia Gas are expected to hold a press conference today after five families were displaced from their homes in North Stafford on Tuesday.

Several residents reported a strange odor in the area of Woodstream Boulevard and Short Branch Road, in the neighborhood located behind Stafford Marketplace.

Stafford Fire and Rescue Department officials have scheduled a press briefing at 2:00 p.m. today to discuss the hazmat situation in the Woodstream neighborhood in north Stafford. The briefing will take place at the command post vehicle located at the intersection of Woodstream Boulevard and Short Branch Road.

Background: Five families were displaced yesterday (February 8, 2011) as a result of an investigation into reports of an odor of gas in the neighborhood. Columbia Gas and Fire and Rescue officials are investigating the area to locate the source of the odor. So far, they have determined that there are high levels of methane in the soil near the foundations of seven homes on Short Branch Road. All tests conducted so far have indicated that there are no levels of methane or other gases inside the homes. As a precaution, power to all seven homes was shut off yesterday as the investigation continued and the residents were placed in a hotel by the Red Cross until power can be restored and their homes deemed safe.

The investigation is ongoing. Representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management are at the scene assisting Fire and Rescue in monitoring and testing.

-Stafford County Department of Fire and Rescue