Major Gas Leak Closes Grosse Pointe North High

(UPDATED) GROSSE POINTE WOODS, MI — A natural gas leak near Grosse Pointe North High School has forced the evacuation of nearby residents and put the school on lockdown until further notice. A major gas line was struck at Vernier Road, near Morningside Drive. Vernier Road is closed between Lakeshore Road and Wedgewood Drive. At least one block of homes was evacuated, according to media reports.

"Grosse Pointe Woods Public Safety has closed the North High School campus until further notified, to keep students safe while they address a gas leak on Morningside,” the school district wrote in a statement. “Lunch will be closed campus also. All middle school students who take classes at North are safely back in their middle schools. Ferry Elementary, Mason Elementary and Parcells Middle School are not closed and have been cleared for outdoor recess. North staff is working with the students taking Advanced Placement (AP) tests across the street now and this afternoon."

Grosse Pointe Woods Public Safety Director John Kosanke said a DTE crew was performing gas valve work on Vernier Road near Morningside when it struck a gas main and ruptured it, according to a Detroit Free News report. He told the newspaper his department received a call about the leak at about 9:25 a.m.

DTE Spokesman John Fossen confirmed one of the company’s construction crews that was doing work in the area struck a gas main, the News reported. No injuries or other damage has been reported, Fossen said. There’s no estimate for when repairs will be completed, the newspaper reported.

It's the second recent gas leak in Grosse Pointe Woods. On April 27, a DTE contractor struck a gas main in the Mack Avenue and Allard Road area, the Detroit News reported.

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