Gas leak shuts down road in McHenry

A gas leak Wednesday prompted McHenry to the city sending an alert to residents, but the leak was restricted to one home on Shore Drive, a McHenry Township Fire Protection District official said.

An engine company stood by the home for about an hour while waiting for a crew from Nicor to make repairs, Battalion Chief Dave Harwood said.

“We didn’t need to check buildings. It was an outside leak that dissipated. There was no cause for alarm,” Harwood said.

The line was broken by a contractor installing conduit on the property, McHenry Police Officer Mike Spohn said.

The city alert was sent out at 10:35 a.m. and advised residents to avoid the 5300-5600 blocks of Shore drive “for the next several hours” due to a leak near 5400 Shore Drive.

Harwood said the leak came from a small residential line, adding it could not be compared to the leak Monday in Woodstock. In that instance, a leak that was caused by a crew nicking a gas main was followed by an explosion that leveled one house, left another uninhabitable and damaged about 18 other structures.