BOSTON, MA (WBZ-AM) — It was a cold weekend for residents of a housing development in Roxbury, after crews had to turn off gas service to several hundred people, due to a gas leak.
The gas leak at the Academy Homes Residential Complex on Friday forced the property management company and National Grid to turn off gas service for residents living in 11 buildings.
On Monday, those residents were being given portable electric heaters.
A spokesperson for the management company says about a quarter of the residents moved out to stay with friends or relatives until service is restored.
The spokesman also says that hot meals have been provided in the community room of Academy homes, and they plan to do that with Christmas dinner Tuesday. He says that there are 35 plumbers and 35 maintenance workers, accompanied by National Grid Crews and members of the City of Boston's Inspectional services department are working to restore service.
They hope to get it done in the next couple days. But after what happened in the Merrimack Valley, with the gas fires and explosions, they are proceeding with an abundance of caution as they replace nearly 500 gas valves across the property.
WBZ NewsRadio's Carl Stevens (@CarlWBZ) reports