Belmont Fire Log: Belmont Center Night Workers Hit Gas Pipe

Yes, it does smell like gas

May 5 – A few minutes after noon, Engine 2 headed to a location on Carleton Road to investigate the outside odor of natural gas. And, yes, there was a faint odor detected in the air so the gas company was asked to respond. Thankfully there was no inside odor and normal readings were displayed by the fire department's detection equipment in nearby residences.

Plug it in 

May 5 – A quarter past 6 p.m., Engine 1 and Rescue 1 were dispatched to a condo complex on Lexington Street after the carbon monoxide alarm went off. The homeowner who made the call met with companies outside. The Rescue personnel performed a quick medical assessment while the crew from Engine 1 checked the interior. After detection equipment found normal readings in the house, fire said the CO detector appeared to be only partially plugged in. The problem was resolved when the device was properly pushed in.

It sort of smelled like smoke

May 9 – Two minutes before noon, the entire Belmont Fire Department was sent to a Orchard Street house to investigate possible smoke inside the building. The homeowner told arriving crews of smelling a burning odor, possibly electrical. But the companies were unable to detect an inside odor and the Thermal Imaging Camera could not find any "hot spots" in the home.  And all circuit breakers were normal. Just to be on the safe side, the homeowner was advised by command to have an electrician check his system.

Self cleaning too well

May 9 – At a quarter 'til 2 p.m., Engine 1 was sent to a two-family Hammond Road structure to investigate a home alarm. One of the home owners told the crew that she set her oven on self cleaning and shortly afterwards the smoke detectors went off. After looking throughout the house, it was an overactive fire alarm. 

Faulty detector 

May 9 – A few minutes 'til 2:30 p.m., Engine 1 went to Payson Road to investigate a home fire alarm. The second-floor occupant said her detectors were going off.  There was no smoke or fire on the second and third floors and the first floor was unoccupied. Turns out that there was a faulty second floor detector. The resident removed the batteries from second and third floor detectors prior to the crews arrival. Engine 1 re-attached the batteries and performed a test. The smoke detectors on second and third floors sounded upon our test.

Workers hit the mark

May 10 – A half past midnight, Engine 2 took the half-block drive to a restaurant on Leonard Street in Belmont Center. A fire alarm company hired by the business asked told the Fire Department to meet the gas company at the scene. The gas company representative informed the fire department that construction workers working on the Belmont Center infrastructure reconstruction project hit a gas service pipe while digging. He also said the construction company was in the process of containing the leak and a repair crew from the gas company was responding to the scene. While everything should be OK, the gas rep requested the Fire crew enter surrounding businesses just to perform a check that gas had not entered any basements. Fire Department entered some businesses and asked some owners and town workers to come on down to open their stores. After the town got normal readings in the Center, a town official said it is safe, the gas company repair crew left and the work on the roadway continued.