Major gas leak in Longueuil causes power outages on Sunday morning

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On Sunday, Hydro-Québec customers had their electricity cut off in several parts of Longueuil while Énergir teams worked to repair a large natural gas leak reported around 9:15 a.m. on Taschereau Boulevard in the Coteau-Rouge Road area, said François Boucher, spokesman for the Longueuil police.

The blackout was authorized by the Longueuil Fire Department as a preventive measure. Initially, thousands of customers were affected in a large part of the South Shore community while Énergir teams attempted to locate the site of the gas leak. After the leak was found, power was restored to most residents. By 2:30 p.m., the number of Hydro customers without power in Longueuil had dropped to 473.

Traffic on Taschereau was closed in both directions all morning and reopened toward Brossard around 12:30 p.m., Boucher said. Traffic on Taschereau remained closed between Curé-Poirier Blvd. W. and the Jacques-Cartier Bridge.

As of Sunday afternoon, emergency crews were still working in two areas to stop the gas leak, said Énergir spokesman Lambert Gosselin. The plan is to disconnect the gas line upstream and downstream of the leak and then repair the line, he said. Emergency crews are expected to work through the night in the hope that the repair will be completed in time for traffic to resume in both directions on Monday morning.

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