UPDATE: Work to fix gas line will continue through the night in Schuylkill County

SAINT CLAIR — Work to repair a ruptured natural gas line that forced the closing of Route 61 will continue through the night, UGI spokesman John Mason said late Tuesday.

Some 15 hours after the line was ruptured by machinery working on the realignment of Route 61, Mason said there was no timeline for fixing the leak and reopening the highway.

“Our goal is not to affect service to other customers,” Mason said. “Right now, only one customer, Pottsville Materials, has been impacted.”

Emergency crews respond to a gas leak along Route 61 between Saint Clair and Frackville.

The line feeds natural gas to hundreds of residential and commercial customers, Mason said.

Pressure has been reduced in the line, minimizing the leak, he said. The challenge for engineers is to replace the damaged section without interrupting service.

The line was damaged around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday. There was no explosion, and no one was injured.

Mason said earlier Tuesday, “There’s no stopping on the work to fix this."

The break is on the west side of the highway near Dark Water Road.

Both northbound and southbound lanes of Route 61 are closed between Terry Rich Boulevard at the Coal Creek Commerce Center in Saint Clair and Mall Road near Interstate 81.

UGI had a command center set up near the Schuylkill Municipal Authority’s red brick building on the opposite side of the highway.

Traffic was detoured using routes 209 and 901 and I-81, according to PennDOT.

A supervisor with the Schuylkill County Communications Center had said early Tuesday the closure would be “an extended operation.”

The $115 million grade project, the largest road construction PennDOT has ever undertaken in Schuylkill County, began in earnest this spring with excavation and other work along the 4.2-mile stretch from Terry Rich Boulevard in Saint Clair to the interchange.

Business slowed

Bern Pasker, of Frackville, was headed home when he discovered the closure. He decided to stop at Dunkin’ at the commerce center for a glazed doughnut and a coffee.

“I figure let the boys do what they’ve got to do,” he said.

Lori Smith, store director, said the traffic closure was affecting business.

“It’s absolutely slower than normal,” she said.

Not sure of a number, she estimated business was down around 50%.

Smith said that she noticed a drop between 8:30 and 9 a.m., much earlier than the typical 10 a.m. falloff from the morning rush.

Updates on road conditions can be found at www.511pa.com.