Update: Source For Natural Gas Leak Identified

The Lakewood Fire Department evacuated 30 people from a residential and commercial building that housed a daycare center in Lakewood at about 10:25 a.m. Tuesday because of a significant natural gas leak, reportedly from the boiler for the water heater, said assistant fire marshal Hallie McCurdy.

There were no reported injuries of gas inhalation, McCurdy said. But one apartment resident, Nicole McCollum, may have come close. She was at home when she smelled gas.

"She (Jan Williams, property manager) said get out just as I was lighting a cigarette," McCollum said. "I don't know if it was really going to blow up but if you tell me there's a gas leak, I'm out."

Upon arrival, crews found a significant gas leak in the building and shut off the gas and were waiting for technicians for Puget Sound Energy to diagnose the problem, McCurdy said.

"The gas levels were too high to enter, so they opened window and ventilated the structure," she said.

Hands of Care Learning Center, a daycare on the bottom floor, had 18 kids inside prior to the evacuation. A Pierce Transit bus arrived to keep them warm until their parents were informed of the incident.

The tenants living upstairs in the Bridgeport Way Apartment complex were forced to vacate the premises, and fire crews had to force entry to at least one apartment. Williams said people started smelling a funny smell.

"This has never happened before," she said. "That was the biggest thing was to get the kids out."

Hands of Care manager Casandra Crosby was scrambling to notify parents of the situation. Crosby said she wasn't concerned just as long as everything is running smoothly.

"They're going to be fine," she said about the children.

McCurdy is scheduled to release an update on the gas leak. Stay tuned for more detail.