Tuesday July 31, 2012 (Vol. 37 No. 61)
V O I C E
O F
W H I T E
R O C K
A N D
S O U T H
S U R R E Y
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Settling in: Spurred by her own struggles adapting to Canada years ago, Surrey’s Harvinder Sandhu now works to help new immigrants adjust to life in a new country. see page 11
16-year-old in hospital
Teen injured in crash Dan Ferguson Staff reporter
Dan Ferguson photo
Members of the Surrey Fire Service help cordon off the area of a serious gas leak on 24 Avenue and 160 Street on Monday afternoon.
City crews cut through high-pressure line in South Surrey
Gas leak forces evacuations Kevin Diakiw Black Press
Dozens of South Surrey businesses were evacuated Monday afternoon after a natural gas line under 24 Avenue was severed. City of Surrey crews were working in the area of 24 Avenue and 160 Street when they hit the high-pressure FortisBC line around 12:30 p.m. The city was working at capping off a water main at the southeast corner of the intersection when the incident happened. Witnesses reported hearing a loud, prolonged noise prior to being evacuated. They described the sound of the leak from the four-inch pipe as “like a jet engine.” Fire crews closer to the scene said it was “deafening.” Employees and customers of businesses within a 1½-block radius of the leak – including the Peace Arch News – were ordered to clear out. Surrey and White Rock RCMP officers helped contain the scene, blocking off area roads – 24 Avenue, from King George Boulevard to 168
SANDPIPER LIQUOR STORE
Sarah Massah photo
Surrey Fire Capt. Brent Davidson speaks with an RCMP officer on the scene of the gas leak. Street, and 160 Street, from about 22 to 27 Avenue. Surrey RCMP Sgt. Drew Grainger said the evacuation was in the interest of safety. The gas discharging from the pipe was “highly flammable,” he said. “This is about as big as it gets,” Grainger told Peace Arch News of the risk.
“The potential for disaster is obviously huge.” If it detonated, the results would be “catastrophic,” Grainger said. Veronica Moretti was at work at Turner Geox in Grandview Corners when the leak occurred. The area was quickly overwhelmed by a foul odour, she said. “The smell of gas was way, way, way too much,” Moretti said. “We were all running around (asking) ‘what’s happening, what’s happening?’” Repair teams from Fortis arrived about 2:15 p.m. and the gas was shut off in about an hour. Power to the area was shut off shortly after. For some businesses, it remained off until after 6 p.m. The roads remained closed until about 5 p.m. Vincent Lalonde, Surrey’s general manager of engineering, said he was investigating how and why the pipe was damaged. “We always use (BC)1-CALL. Right now, we’re interviewing the crews to make sure exactly what happened,” Lalonde said. - with files from Tracy Holmes
A 16-year-old driving a Honda Civic suffered serious head injuries when he lost control of his vehicle in the 4300-block of 152 Street Saturday morning. Surrey RCMP said the vehicle was seen driving erratically while heading north on 152 around 7 a.m. July 28. After passing on the shoulder, the Civic crossed the centre line and collided with an oncoming Jeep Wrangler. The southbound Jeep hit the Civic’s passenger-side door. The driver of the Honda was transported to hospital, where he is expected to remain for several days. The driver of the Wrangler suffered less severe injuries, police said. Southbound traffic on 152 just before the train crossing at Colebrook Road was blocked off for approximately two hours. The investigation into the crash is continuing, RCMP said. As yet, no charges have been laid.
Child falls from window A toddler is fortunate to have escaped injury after falling from a third-storey window on the weekend. Police say the two-year-old girl was playing in a room on the third floor of an apartment complex in the 12100-block of 75A Avenue at about 2 p.m. on Saturday. Her mother went to check something on the stove, and the toddler climbed on some furniture and leaned against a screen panel, which gave way. The girl tumbled out, landing in a bush, and was taken to hospital where it was determined she hadn’t broken any bones or suffered any other serious injury.
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