‘Major incident’ at block of flats as 700 people evacuated after huge gas leak
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A major incident has been declared after a gas leak at a block of flats in Crawley.
A significant gas leak was reported at around 12.21am on Wednesday, January 6, and it has since been declared as a major incident, Sussex Police have said.
The force has said the incident is a multi-agency response, with West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service and South East Coast Ambulance Service at the scene.
West Sussex County Council, Crawley Borough Council and Southern Gas are also at the scene to resolve the incident quickly and safely.
Around 700 residents have been evacuated and placed into temporary accommodation until the scene is safe, police have said.
They also confirmed that no injuries have been reported.
Police have warned it may take several hours to resolve the situation.
People are also being urged to stay away from the area.
Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Rayland said: “This is an ongoing incident which has caused huge disruption to hundreds of people on a cold January morning, and I’d like to thank everyone for their patience and understanding as we continue to work with our partners to minimise the ongoing disruption.
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“We are working hard to ensure this is dealt with as soon as possible to enable everyone to return home, however this may take several hours yet. In the meantime, we are urging everyone to stay away from the area to allow the responding agencies to focus on resolving the incident to allow residents to return home."
The cause of the major gas leak is not known at this time.
“The exact cause of the gas leak is yet to be determined but not believed to be criminal, and we will provide more information as soon as we are able to.”
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