A group of residents and students from a private school in Lake Bluff were briefly evacuated Tuesday following a gas leak in the village, officials said.
Just before noon, the two-block area between Rockland Avenue and Mawman Avenue from West Scranton Avenue to Main Street was evacuated after the leak was reported at a residence on the 600 block of Mawman.
“There was a private property owner who was having a sewer repair and the contractor doing that work struck a gas main,” Village Administrator Drew Irvin explained.
Approximately 110 students and 16 staff members from the Forest Bluff School, located on the first block of Scranton Avenue, were sent to the nearby Lake Bluff Library as North Shore Gas crews worked to repair the leak.
Families then picked up the children at the library with classes set to resume Wednesday morning, Head of School Lynn Jessen said.
Residents were allowed to return to their homes beginning at 1:45 p.m., Lake Bluff Police said in a statement.
There were no reports of damage or injuries, Deputy Police Chief Erik Gehrke added.
A North Shore Gas spokesman said the repairs have been completed and crews were working to restore service to all affected customers.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
