Highway Gas Line Break Causes Confusion and Delay
Written by Andrew-Rossi on July 2, 2020
A serious situation turned into a confusing one during a gas line break.
Around 4:30 yesterday afternoon, Black Hills Energy received a call of a broken gas line along the Greybull Highway, US 14. Apparently, a car had driven over the line causing the break. Multiple agencies, including WYDOT and a crew from Black Hills Energy, immediately responded to the scene. They found gas was blowing onto the highway, creating a potential hazard. So, all the lanes of US 14 were closed between County Road 3DX and Liberty Lane while crews worked to repair the line. Wyoming Highway Patrol officers stopped traffic at either end and diverted it to alternate routes.
This is where the confusion sets in. On WYDOT’s WyoRoad Info website, they listed the estimated open time at 19 hours, placing US 14’s reopening sometime this afternoon. But Black Hills Energy estimated the repairs would only take about 2 hours. In reality, it only took 1. By 5:30 pm, the repair was finished, the crews and vehicles were pulling away, and the Greybull Highway open to all traffic. No Black Hills Energy customers lost service. Exactly what caused this time disparity between the 2 entities is unknown.
Regardless, the damage is fully repaired and the Greybull Highway fully open. At this point, both Black Hills Energy and WYDOT are on the same page.
