Parents had to pick up their children from school after an electrical fault cause a gas leak in the building.
Cambridge Road Nursery and Bedford Primary School in Bootle were evacuated by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) at around 8.45am on Wednesday, June 29, following reports of a smell of gas in the area. Crews rushed to the scene, on Cambridge Road, closed an area that included the school and evacuated the children.
A spokesperson from Sefton Council, on behalf of the school, said all children were back with parents and guardians following the evacuation. People in the area were also asked to close their windows.
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Cadent were called to the scene by MFRS to help them look into the problem. After an investigation, the emergency services found an underground electrical fault had ruptured a gas main in the road.
Now, Cadent are venting the gas and monitoring levels in Bedford Primary School and Cambridge Nursery, which are showing low levels of gas. Scottish Power were also called to the scene to assist with the electrical fault.
A spokesperson from MFRS said: "Merseyside Police are in attendance assisting with the safety cordon at the scene. A multi-agency meeting has taken place with MFRS, Cadent Gas and Scottish Power to ascertain the best plan of action to dig to access the best site where the problem can be isolated.
"This point has been found at a sub-station and a safe system of work is in place whereby cadent are continuing to monitor the area as work progresses to resolve the issue, fire crews are stood by with extinguishers and main branch hoses as a precaution. Properties along the road have been isolated by Scottish Power, the source of the leak has been found and is in the process of being isolated by Cadent.
"Cadent have confirmed that MFRS are no longer required at the scene and the scene has been handed over to them as just before 2pm, they will confirm when residents will be able to return to their homes."
A spokesperson from Scottish Power Energy Network said they have had to disconnect the electricity supply from around 30 homes and the school. They added: "Our engineers are currently responding to an incident in the Quarry Road / Cambridge Road area of Bootle, we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
"We’re working to restore supplies as soon as possible and will continue to work with relevant parties to investigate what happened."
Cadent also gave an update on its part resolving the incident and said they have fixed the damaged gas pipe in the area.
A spokesperson for Cadent, Merseyside’s gas emergency service, said: “While there was no fault with the gas network, we found there had been third-party damage to a gas pipe. This has now been fixed.
"We are carrying out our final checks of properties in the immediate vicinity and will then leave site. This has been a fantastic response by the emergency services and local agencies, to make sure everyone is safe and looked after.
"It is also a reminder that, if ever you smell gas, day or night, act immediately and call the national gas emergency service on 0800 111 999. Our teams are on standby 24/7 to respond to gas emergencies."
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