Potential health threats prompted Charlottesville fire officials to evacuate two University buildings Monday afternoon when a gas leak was discovered near Observatory Hill Dining Hall and strange odors were reported near Medical Research Building 4 on Lane Road.
Fire department officials arrived at O-Hill at 5:11 p.m. after being alerted of the problem and identified leaks in two high-pressure channels that had been cut by an excavation operation near Edgemont Road, according to Battalion Chief Peter Carpenter. At the scene, officials evacuated the dining hall as part of efforts to isolate the affected area, Carpenter said. Officials then monitored air samples to detect the presence of natural gas, according to Carpenter, after which they "went around the perimeter to make sure people around the leak were safe." Carpenter added that no one required medical attention.
Carpenter noted that the Charlottesville gas division was also called in and was responsible for closing the leak. Officials later toured the area, pronouncing it safe.
Fire department officials responded earlier that day to another safety concern on Grounds after occupants of MR-4 evacuated the building because of strange odors and reports of nausea.
According to University Medical Center spokesperson Peter Jump, occupants pulled the fire alarm and left the building after smelling the odor and having people complainof stomach problems. The fire department, police and rescue squad responded to the alarm, Jump said.
"Apparently there was a construction operation that had to do with sealing concrete," Carpenter said. "Vapors entered the fresh air intake of the building, causing some of the occupants problems."
The fire department, along with a representative from Environmental Health Services, ventilated the building before occupants were allowed to return inside, Jump said.
According to Carpenter, two people received medical attention on the scene, but no one was taken to the hospital.
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