ATLANTA — After a massive erupted along Sylvan Road in Southwest Atlanta on Wednesday, crews are now trying to make repairs as flames burst through the pavement and baked the asphalt for at least an hour.
A piece of construction equipment sparked the whole thing around 10:30 a.m.
Crews initially thought the repairs would take only 12 hours to repair, but now they tell Channel 2′s Candace McCowan that they will be working at least through the night to repair the line.
Then the roadway will need to be repaired.
When Snehith Guntaka saw these flames on his way to work Wednesday, he thought it was just a car fire.
Until he stopped at the intersection.
“When I got close, I had my windows and everything rolled up, but you could still feel the heat like instantly. It just came in through the door and through the window, so I just tried to get out of there rather quickly,” Guntaka said.
The intense heat continued for more than an hour, leaving behind a mess for crews.
“The flames were pretty extensive because of a boring rig and a tractor that was in the area,” said Holly Lovett from Atlanta Gas Light.
Atlanta Gas Light will need to go in and repair the 4-inch plastic main that broke, but first crews had to wait for the area to cool, then pump the water from the fire department.
Now, the work is underway in a cleanup and repair that could take some time.
“Our crews are going to work as quickly as possible to get that line repaired,” Lovett said.
Crews told McCowan that they trying to work fast but safely. They’ve shut down roads for several blocks around the area.
For people who take that way to get to work in the mornings, there’s a chance Sylvan Road might still be blocked off into the morning commute.