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Photo: Pictures by VINCENT BROWN

NOTHING to do but wait . . . workers who had been evacuated

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Thousand evacuated after digger cuts gas pipe
Oldham town centre was getting back to normal today after a gas leak forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 students, shoppers and workers.

Fire chiefs say it was only good fortune and a rapid response by emergency services that prevented a potential gas-blast disaster yesterday.

Gas was released from a damaged pipe and ignited into flames several feet high in King Street at 12.30pm.

Shops, businesses and Oldham Sixth Form College were cleared and roads closed causing traffic snarl ups.

Police, led by Oldham’s top cop Chief Supt Tim Forber, rushed from the nearby Barn Street HQ to help firefighters evacuate and cordon off the area while National Grid officers arrived to deal with the leaking gas. Road closures were put in place in King Street, Manchester Road, Union Street and George Street.

Contractors working on the demolition of the former Oldham Baptist Church, which is being pulled down to make way for the Metrolink extension into the town centre, had unwittingly damaged a gas pipe and electrical cable.

Oldham Fire Station Watch Commander Mark Williams said: “One of the diggers unearthed a power cable and gas main. The digger operator was told it was isolated but it wasn’t. There was an ignition of a gas supply underground with flames 7ft high coming out the ground.”

The contractor put the flames out but this actually made the situation worse as the gas can continue to leak — potentially into buildings. There were fears that the neighbouring ACE Express restaurant was in most danger if the gas found an ignition source but it was quickly evacuated.

Mr Williams said: “When we arrived there was a strong smell of gas. We evacuated many premises, including the college and Mecca Bingo. The whole area was cordoned off in minutes.

“It had the potential to be very serious. It took several hours to isolate the supply and caused gridlock in the town centre.

Roads were reopened at 4pm with only a small section between Barn Street and Union Street left closed.

A temporary cap was put on the leak and the gas company is now working to excavate the pavement next to it to put a permanent cap on.

Dozens of shops had to close their shutters for the afternoon, including Debenhams, which warned customers the shop’s rear exits were locked.

Danny Jarega, who owns Saks hairdressers on Barn Street, said: “One customer was having her hair coloured at the time, so we just had to wash it quickly and ask her to leave with wet hair.

“We didn’t know what was going on at first when they started to cordon it off outside the shop - we thought it was a terrorist attack or a murder.

Oldham Sixth Form student, Sahba Naz, (17), said: “We just sat down after coming in from lunch and then we were told we had to evacuate.

“The fire alarm was going off and everyone had to leave by the emergency exits. It was completely hectic, there were people everywhere outside, with fire engines and police cars parked all over the place. I was scared, I thought it might blow up.”