Officials ordered the evacuation of hundreds of residents from a Dallas apartment complex late Friday following the discovery of a natural gas leak. The incident occurred at the Alexan Riveredge Apartments, located on Turtle Creek Boulevard near the Trinity River.
Dallas Fire-Rescue was dispatched to the scene just before 7:30 p.m. Spokesman Jason Evans stated that Atmos Energy was conducting a routine inspection of the five-story structure after responding to a small fire earlier in the day. Despite finding no gas readings inside the units, authorities decided to clear the building as a precaution.
The evacuation affected all 325 units in the complex, which is approximately 90 percent occupied. Power to the property was shut off while the City of Dallas Department of Emergency Management and Crisis Response assisted with crowd control. Dallas Area Rapid Transit provided buses for residents to wait in while crews addressed the issue.
Evans noted that firefighters had responded to a kitchen fire on the fourth floor around 3 p.m. The blaze was extinguished by both the fire department and the building's sprinkler system. No injuries were reported from that earlier incident, and officials stated it is not believed to be connected to the subsequent gas leak.
