A major natural-gas leak forced Lawrence, Mass., residents to evacuate their homes early on Sept. 27. National Grid cut power to more than 1,300 customers to avoid another disaster like last year’s natural-gas explosions and fires in Lawrence and two other towns north of Boston. The leak came just days after federal officials called for changes to national pipeline regulations as they released a final report on the causes of the Sept. 13, 2018, disaster.
After the leak was discovered in a high-pressure pipeline at 3:15 a.m. on Sept. 27, hundreds of people were evacuated as Columbia Gas of Massachusetts cut gas to 146 customers and searched for leaked gas. No fires or explosions had been reported, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.