Gas Main Explodes In Walnut Creek

[LVT]

Gas Main Explodes In Walnut Creek

POSTED: 1:40 pm PST November 9, 2004

WALNUT CREEK -- A gas main has exploded near Las Lomas High School's football field on South Main Street near Highway 680 in Walnut Creek, sending a huge plume of smoke and flames skyward.

The explosion has forced the evacuation of the high school. At least one home was on fire and the California Highway Patrol has shutdown part of Highway 680.

"All of a sudden we heard a boom," said Laura Roy, who has an office near the scene. "It's in a dense area of homes. From our vantage point it doesn't look like its spreading, but it must be."

more...
http://www.ktvu.com/news/3904460/detail.html

Anybody in this area? Anymore news than this?

[arcane1]

1. hey! I live there!!

this is probably the most exciting thing Walnut Creek has seen since, well, since ever! :silly:

there is a HUGE plume of black smoke rising right now, visible from work (in Pleasant Hill, a few miles north)

[orwell]

2. From the Bay Area

I live about two hours north of there now but that is a rather heavily populated suburb in the East Bay (across the bay from San Francisco)

Walnut Creek has become an upper middle class enclave with many trendy stores and a growing, affluent population. Those homes are pretty expensive, 500k to 1 mil+

It at the junction of two freeways, highway 24 and the 680 corridor which is a major commuting artery.

It will be very busy during the rush hour.

[arcane1]

3. which is exactly

why I'm leaving :)

[marlakay]

Live a few blocks away!

My ten min. ride home took an hour! yuck..

Heard on the news 3 people died some air lifted out and 5 missing. Tons of cops all over the place. I live about 5 blocks from where it exploded and the high school where my step daughter goes was less than a block away. they evacuated so fast they told the kids don't even get your cars leave immediately!

So many cars in the area it was like being on the freeway after a major accident. I live downtown in the middle of it all in an apt.

[arcane1]

5. same here

my street was closed, all the bus routes were screwed up, etc. Looked like Broadway was still closed down this morning

[marlakay]

4. dupe

[davidinalameda]

6. saw it on the news last night

I thought they were talking about Iraq at first