The Centerpoint Energy gas line was located some 20 or 30 feet from the roadway near the Wingate Hotel but had been blowing gas across the road, prompting a total closure of the roadway by local police and fire. Engineers with the Texas Department of Transportation say crews contracted by AT&T caused the rupture as they were digging to move communication lines in conjunction with the TxDOT FM 306 expansion project.
The rupture occurred before 11 a.m. Police officers teamed up with Hunter Industries personnel to direct traffic while Centerpoint crews clamped the line. Hunter Industries is the general contractor working on the expansion.
The roadway was reopened to traffic a little after 1 p.m.
Center point will continue to work on repairing the line. That work is out of the way of the active lanes on FM 306.