Cape Cod Mall Evacuated…
HYANNIS – Firefighters had to evacuate the Cape Cod Mall shortly after 11:30am today, after verifying a strong natural gas leak…
The call originally came from inside Best Buy after a strong odor of natural gas. Best Buy was in the process of evacuating its customers when fire officials found the leak near the rear loading dock on the exterior of the building.
Fire command immediately pulled two audible alarms and ordered everyone out of the building.
Barnstable police and Cape Cod Mall security closed off the area while shoppers were asked to leave for their own safety.
Fire command relayed a message to National Grid, urging them to respond right away. The leak was described as being located at the meter.
Firefighters ran hoses as a precaution while snow was carefully cleared away from the area of the meter.
Gas was reportedly shut down just after 12 noon and firefighters checked for possible gas buildup inside certain walls.
By about 12:15pm, alarms were shut off and it was deemed safe for shoppers to reenter the mall.
The following video highlights the evacuation, which went smoothly, although some shoppers thought it may have been just a drill… Other shoppers, however, had smelled the strong odor of gas and immediately knew it was not a drill. [Press play… select HD from the settings and enlarge the player for best quality…]
3/1/2015
Robert Bastille,
