A natural gas leak halted renovation efforts in front of the Wild Duck Cafe on Villard Street Monday afternoon.@@http://kezi.com/news/local/232685@@
The Eugene Fire Department and NW Natural both responded to the potentially dangerous leak which threatened to evacuate surrounding businesses and apartments which are home to many University students.@@https://www.nwnatural.com/@@
The general contracting company Markus-Thompson Construction Inc. was responsible for the incident, as their heavy machinery punctured a gas line underneath the sidewalk adjacent to Wild Duck and Skybox Apartments.@@http://www.markus-thompson.com/@@
Wild Duck employee Nate Boozer@@http://www.facebook.com/pages/Wild-Duck-Cafe/209280589141340@@ said the renovation efforts were to allow for outdoor seating for restaurant and bar patrons along the sidewalk.@@http://dailyemerald.com/2011/10/09/willamette-valley-hop-festival/111009-mtc-freshhops-5910_edit/@@
“They were fixing concrete to comply with city code, which says that the transition from a doorway to the sidewalk must be level,” Boozer said.
According to NW Natural manager Satch Gill, the incident was a due to negligence on Markus-Thompson’s behalf.@@http://springmeadow-hoa.org/docu/minutes/2005-04-25_minutes.pdf (PDF)@@
“Contractors are supposed to call before they dig to ensure there are no lines underneath, and Markus-Thompson didn’t call,” Gill said.