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	Photo by Bill Green Firefighter Russ Rusenko leads a group of children safely across a field toward the firehall. A 12-inch gas main was ruptured Monday afternoon on Adamstown Road. Gas flowed for slightly more than an hour before the leak was contained. More than 100 people were evacuated from the area, including about 30 children from Creative Memories Children's Learning Center who were led by firefighters to the Carroll Manor Fire hall for safety. Purchase this photo

The pressurized gas leaking from the 12-inch underground pipe sounded like a small jet, said Steve Shook, deputy chief of Carroll Manor Fire Co. "I knew a major gas line was struck."

The gas pipe was on county-owned land along Adamstown Road, about 100 yards from Carroll Manor Elementary School, said Steve Leatherman, bureau chief of support services for the county's Division of Fire and Rescue Services.

"It's been there for years," Shook said.

A contractor, drilling a hole for a utility pole, struck the pipe, causing the natural gas leak at 3:11 p.m., Leatherman said.

Shook was in the fire station within two minutes of the call. He called for more units.

"I knew we would probably have to evacuate within the first five minutes," he said.

The areas evacuated were Green Hill Manor, Trans-Tech, Creating Memories Children's Learning Center and residents in homes on Adamstown Road near the leak.

Adamstown Road was closed from New Design Road to Mountville Road, and New Design Road to Green Hill Manor, Shook said.

"If you get the right mixture of gas and air, that's when it's dangerous. That's what we were worried about," Shook said.

The gas/air mix never became dangerous, he said.

The gas lines in Adamstown are metered, Shook said. "No meter showed an atmosphere to cause any danger at any time."

No one was hurt, Shook said.

Washington Gas secured the line by 4:30 p.m., Leatherman said.

"They shut it off," Shook said. "They had to dig down to secure it. That's why the small backhoe was brought in."

The majority of people evacuated to Carroll Manor Fire Station were from Creating Memories Children's Learning Center and Trans-Tech Inc., Shook said. The learning center had 36 children.

Snacks were served inside the fire station, Shook said.

Cpl. Gregory Santangelo of the Frederick County Sheriff's Office said the utility company told the contractor his crew could work there.

Leatherman said contractors are supposed to know where all the underground utility pipes are prior to digging. He did not know if the contractor called "Miss Utility" to verify the location of underground gas pipes.

A law passed in May 2001 requires that all owners of underground facilities inform excavators of utility lines, according to Miss Utility's website, http://www.missutility.net.

Washington Gas is listed on Miss Utility's website as a Maryland member.

Leatherman did not know how much gas leaked out during the hour and 19 minutes needed to secure the line.

Washington Gas could not be reached for comment and company workers at the scene declined comment.

The wind was blowing west, so residents who had to evacuate from homes upwind were stationed in place, Leatherman said. One of those residents, Don Jarvis, said he was told to stay outside his Adamstown home about 200 yards east of the leak.

He hunkered down on a grassy hill with his family and dogs. Their cat was inside the house. They didn't have time to find the cat, he said.

Evacuating all the people is a big job, he said. "What if neighbors are asleep?"