Gas line rupture shuts down I-4

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - A ruptured gas line forced the closure of Interstate 4 for several hours in Central Florida on Monday afternoon.  

Construction crews were working to seal the leak of a natural gas line in Altamonte Springs, right at the peak of rush hour.   The work was completed and the roadway reopened around 7 p.m.  Seminole County Fire Rescue says no one was injured in the incident.  

Authorities were not not sure how the line ruptured but it occurred in the middle of a construction site of the I-4 Ultimate project, near State Road 436.  The project calls for a widening of the interstate, with tolled express lanes down the center of the roadway. 

Traffic was shut down in both directions as traffic backed up into Lake Mary to the north and Maitland to the south. Authorities said there was never a threat to residents in the area.

Wind from afternoon thunderstorms spread gas fumes further out off I-4 and State Road 436. Even though the natural gas line was fixed by 7 p.m. and all lanes reopened, traffic wasn't the only thing that was snarled.

"With I-4 and everything being closed, it definitely slowed us down," said Jonathan Villagrana, who works at Valvoline. "So far in the last two to three hours we did one car. Generally before we close, we squeeze in another 10 to 15 cars by then."

Rory Olson of Altamonte Vapor and Company said they were impacted too.

"With I-4 shut down, nobody's coming, it's very, very slow," Olson said.  "We get a lot of business off of I-4. Usually they pull in instead of making all the U-turns." 

I-4 Ultimate Contractors SGL released this statement saying, "This afternoon SGL Constructors was excavating on the right shoulder of eastbound I-4 near SR 436. Workers struck a natural gas line. The incident is under investigation."