SHENANDOAH COUNTY, Va. — A large gas line explosion in Shenandoah County, Virginia shut down multiple roads, including I-81, Tuesday morning.
According to the Shenandoah County Sheriff's Office, the gas line explosion was in the area of Battlefield Road and Copp Road. They also stated that the fire was contained to a single gas line field and no injuries were reported. The fire has since been extinguished.
TC Energy said that around 8:40 a.m. they detected a pressure drop on their Columbia Gas Transmission Pipeline located alongside Interstate-81 in Strasburg.
Crews with the Shenandoah County Fire and Rescue responded to the scene to help with containing and extinguishing the fire. The impacted portion of pipeline remains shut down while crews work to repair. A 1,650-foot response radius was established around the impact site, and the public is asked to avoid that area.
"Our primary focus is the safety of our people and communities and protecting the environment," TC Energy wrote in a statement around 1:30 p.m.
I-81 has since been reopened after morning delays.
An investigation is underway into the explosion.
Here's the full statement from TC Energy about the explosion:
TC Energy continues to respond to an incident on our Columbia Gas Transmission Pipeline located alongside Interstate 81 in Strasburg, Virginia.
Thanks to the assistance of local first responders, agencies and our crews, the fire along the Columbia Gas Transmission Pipeline corridor near Strasburg, Virginia, has been extinguished. We continue to work with local authorities and have established an approximately 1,650-foot response radius to ensure the safety of the local community and to support our response efforts; we are asking that the public avoid the area until further notice.
There remain no reported injuries to our workers or members of the public.
The section of the impacted pipeline remains shut down, and we continue to work with customers who are impacted, including notification of a Force Majeure event.
Our primary focus is the safety of our people and communities and protecting the environment. We are continuing to gather information, assess the effects, and provide updates as they become available.