Workers from Dominion Energy Ohio were using heavy equipment in a hole on Fifth Avenue near the Mahoning County jail on Wednesday afternoon after a road construction crew ruptured a gas line. Staff photo / Ed Runyan

YOUNGSTOWN — City resident Pat Braun was waiting for a bus near the Western Reserve Transit Authority station Wednesday afternoon when he heard escaping natural gas coming from the construction project on nearby Fifth Avenue.

“You know what a steam engine sounds like? That’s what it sounded like,” Braun said about 3 p.m. while sitting on a bench waiting for a later bus.

The rupture occurred about 1:20 p.m., and Dominion Energy Ohio arrived about 20 minutes later and had the gas off by about 2:30 p.m., Neil Durbin, Dominion Energy spokesman, said.

Durbin said a road construction crew working on Fifth Avenue ruptured the gas line. He did not give the name of the company.

Parella-Pannunzio of Austintown is the company carrying out a $6.9 million project on Fifth Avenue in that area. A call to Parella-Pannunzio late Wednesday afternoon was not immediately returned.

The road construction workers were just up Fifth Avenue a short distance from the rupture at 3:15 p.m. continuing their work.

The project will improve Fifth Avenue from West Federal Street to just south of the Madison Avenue Expressway near Youngstown State University’s Stambaugh Stadium.

Braun and other WRTA riders were directed to head across West Federal Street to get away from the gas. About 40 minutes later, he and others were allowed to return.

Durbin said one gas customer, the DeYor Performing Arts Center, 260 W. Federal St., lost its gas service. But as of 5 p.m., service had been restored to the arts center, he said.

About 3:15 p.m., Dominion Energy had several workers using heavy equipment in a hole on Fifth Avenue at Commerce Street to repair the damage.

The rupture delayed WRTA’s fixed route service Wednesday afternoon and closed its Federal Station, the hub for its Mahoning County fixed-route system, WRTA said in a news release.

Most Mahoning County fixed routes, including the Warren Express route, were impacted by the incident.

WRTA recommended riders download the myStop Mobile smartphone app, so they can check the status of any bus along WRTA’s fixed routes.

The myStop Mobile is available on the Apple and Android platforms. Routes also can be tracked from the home page of WRTA’s website at WRTAonline.com.

erunyan@tribtoday.com