Gas Line Rupture Evacuates Homes in Blue Mountain Area [AUDIO]

A homeowner doing some excavation with a backhoe accidentally ruptured a 3/4 inch gas line on the 6300 block of  Forest Hill Road in the Blue Mountain area late Tuesday morning.

Sergeant Tony Rio with the Missoula County Sheriff's department says Missoula Rural Fire crews responded..and Northwestern Energy is sending a crew to repair the damage. Rio says all the surrounding homes have been evacuated as a precaution.

No one has been injured in the incident. Sheriff's deputies have place roadblocks on the road, and the public is asked to avoid the area.

Sergeant Tony Rio