The enormous gas main fire that started on Geary Boulevard near Parker Avenue in the Inner Richmond Wednesday didn't just create a terrifying spectacle — it also appears to have led to a power outage affecting about 2,500 people and leaving hundreds without gas on a cold day, according to PG&E. MORE: 40-foot tower of flames erupts in SF, torches popular restaurant Workers were scrambling to dig up the gas line and stop the flow of gas on Geary Wednesday afternoon. The fire broke out in front of the popular dim sum restaurant Hong Kong Lounge II and was under control about 4:15 p.m., according to fire officials. The incident was caused when a third party fiber optic provider was digging in the street, according to the Fire Department and PG&E. Workers at the restaurant are all accounted for, and the buildings in the surrounding one block radius have been safely evacuated, officials said. No injuries were reported. Geary Boulevard will be closed overnight at the site of the incident, according to SFPD Chief William Scott. ALSO: What's at Geary and Parker, location of massive fire The power outage appeared to be affecting about 2,500 people in the Inner Richmond, Laurel Heights, Anza Vista and part of the Presidio in the early afternoon. Shortly after 2 p.m., PG&E estimated that power would be restored between 3:45 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. By 3:30 p.m., the estimate had been pushed forward to 7:30 p.m. "This was not an easy incident, it's a very complex situation they were dealing with," said Blair Jones, a spokesman for PG&E. "Our focus now obviously is on restoration. We've got about 300 customers without gas right now, and as you know it's cold." Temperatures are forecast to dip into the low 40s overnight in San Francisco. Jones added that as of a little before 5 p.m., there were still about 2,500 people without electric service, with PG&E working to restore service in the safest and least disruptive way possible. "We don't want to shut off gas and electricity to thousands of San Franciscans when it's very cold outside," he said. "We are working around the clock to restore that as quickly as possible," he added. "It's a complex array of utilities down there and it takes time." Read: More about the fire from The Chronicle.<doc-sep>SAN FRANCISCO — No one was injured in an suspected gas-line explosion Wednesday afternoon, but it took PG&E crews some two hours to choke off a gas-fueled fire spout after the blast. Shortly after 1:10 p.m., firefighters responded to reports of the explosion and fire near a construction site in the 3300 block of Geary Boulevard at Parker Avenue. The first call from San Francisco fire dispatchers to firefighters described a “gas rupture,” with “possibly something burning.” About two minutes later, a firefighter reported to dispatch seeing flames shooting skyward from about six blocks away on Masonic Avenue. Vallejo resident Adrian Burrell said he happened to be in a ride-share vehicle nearby when the explosion happened. “It was right directly in front of us,” Burrell said. “I was talking to the driver and she suddenly screamed. There was fire and flames, and people were running toward the car.” Burrell said the driver tried to back up, and eventually managed to turn the car around and drive into oncoming traffic lanes to get away. “It was so big and so crazy. I smelled the gas. I just hope everybody’s okay. You don’t expect something like that to happen,” Burrell said. Responding firefighters made sure the area was evacuated and set up water lines on the fires, but the flames could not be controlled until the gas line feeding the fire was choked off. At least one shelter-in-place alert was called for nearby buildings and a pre-school and middle school campus. The fire was up to three alarms by about 2 p.m., burning four buildings on the block, including the popular Hong Kong Lounge II dim-sum restaurant. Five workers were briefly reported to be missing, but San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said later they had been found safely and that there were believed to be no injuries and no one missing. Hayes-White said preliminary assessments appeared to show that a private contractor’s construction crew had been working on a fiber-optic cable when the rupture happened. In a tweet, PG&E said the “[f]low of gas was stopped at 3:36 p.m. after a third-party construction crew – unaffiliated with PG&E – struck a gas distribution pipeline,” and added that about 300 customers would be without gas and 2,500 electric customers affected until fixes were complete. A statement shared Wednesday by Oakland-based Local Clean Energy Alliance decried what organizers perceived to be a needlessly delayed response. “The No PG&E Bailout network recognizes that this pipeline explosion could have been a whole lot worse, but to know that PG&E is unable to turn the gas off in time to respond to this potentially catastrophic situation is outrageous,” the statement read. “We continue to call attention to PG&E and the California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) continued gross negligence that puts workers’ and residents’ lives at risk. We reaffirm our commitment to ratepayers, by fighting the PG&E bailout and call for a public takeover of our electrical and gas utilities, in order to make it accountable to public and worker safety.” SAN FRANCISCO, CA - FEB. 6: A fire burns in San Francisco, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, after a contractor struck a gas line on Geary Boulevard at Parker Street. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Onlookers at the intersection of Parker Avenue and Anza Street watch as firefighters and PG&E workers battle a gas-line explosion and fire in San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group) Firefighters and PG&E workers battle a gas-line explosion and fire in San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group) Firefighters and PG&E workers responded to the scene of a gas-line explosion and fire Wednesday afternoon on Geary Avenue in San Francisco. (Kaitlyn Bartley/Bay Area News Group) Firefighters and PG&E workers responded to the scene of a gas-line explosion and fire Wednesday afternoon on Geary Avenue in San Francisco. (Kaitlyn Bartley/Bay Area News Group) Firefighters and PG&E workers battle a gas-line explosion and fire in San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group) Firefighters and PG&E workers responded to the scene of a gas-line explosion and fire Wednesday afternoon on Geary Avenue in San Francisco. (Kaitlyn Bartley/Bay Area News Group) SAN FRANCISCO, CA - FEB. 6: A fire burns in San Francisco, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019, after a contractor struck a gas line on Geary Boulevard at Parker Street. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Onlookers gather behind a police line near the site of a gas-line explosion and fire Wednesday afternoon on Geary Avenue in San Francisco. (Kaitlyn Bartley/Bay Area News Group) Journalists gather behind a police line near the site of a gas-line explosion and fire Wednesday afternoon on Geary Avenue in San Francisco. (Kaitlyn Bartley/Bay Area News Group) Because the neighborhood has a mix of commercial and residential buildings, some who live nearby were not likely to be able to go back to their homes Wednesday. An evacuation order was still in effect for residents at least one block in all directions from the fire site. Red Cross Bay Area staff responded to the area to tend to some residents, and city staff said a reunification site was available at Mel’s Drive In, 3355 Geary at Beaumont Avenue. Police also responded to block off traffic along nearby streets. Geary is a major artery for San Francisco traffic; the closure caused several bus routes to be moved and traffic was heavy all around the area. Caroline Gasparini, 25, and Kaitlyn Johnson, 24, were in their apartment a few doors down just before the explosion. “We were in the living room, and what caught our attention was our windows started to shake,” Gasparini said. “There’s so much construction noise that you usually assume it’s a truck. Then we saw flames that shot up that were above the building, just shooting straight up, and we decided to gather our stuff and exit.” Johnson noted that neighborhood residents responded fairly quickly, even before police and firefighters arrived. “We saw the pre-school get evacuated,” Johnson said of the neighborhood’s One Fifty Parker Avenue School. “They were evacuating people from a colonoscopy center on gurneys.” Staff writers Matthias Gafni and Nate Gartrell contributed to this report. Check back for updates. (Lone Mountain, San Francisco) Gas Line Explosion in Richmond — Huge flames are erupting from a gas line near a construction site on Geary Blvd & Parker Ave. More updates and video here: https://t.co/hWSKt9rHwF pic.twitter.com/Hk8kEQI8rZ — Citizen SF Bay Area (@CitizenApp_SF) February 6, 2019 #020619WF2 2nd alarm Explosion Geary and Parker AVOID AREA PIO ENROUTE pic.twitter.com/RhqR861i7w — SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT (@SFFDPIO) February 6, 2019 LIVE: Major gas line explosion in San Francisco. https://t.co/hWSKt9a685 https://t.co/AzZdqaUUSV — Citizen SF Bay Area (@CitizenApp_SF) February 6, 2019 We are aware that a gas incident has occurred in the #SanFrancisco #Richmond area (3300 block of Geary Blvd). PLEASE AVOID THE AREA. We are working closely w/ first responders and will communicate more as information becomes available. pic.twitter.com/oJBXMBrYf2 — PG&E (@PGE4Me) February 6, 2019 BREAKING: Avoid the 3300 block of Geary Boulevard at Parker Avenue due to fire. @SFFDPIO & #SFPD are on scene. pic.twitter.com/ub2nRUHcCg — San Francisco Police (@SFPD) February 6, 2019 ATTN: #SFFD activity on Geary and Parker blocking the 38 in both directions. Expect delays and rerouted. — SFMTA (@sfmta_muni) February 6, 2019 #020619WF2 3rd Alarm we have in accounted workers rescues in progress AVOID AREA EVACUATION IN PLACE 1 block circumference MEDIA UPDATE COOK AND GEARY AT 1510 hrs pic.twitter.com/ZSuM6fUhQp — SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT (@SFFDPIO) February 6, 2019 A #SFPD PIO is en route to explosion at Geary & Parker to assist @SFFDPIO. SFPD is assisting w traffic control & evacuation of buildings in immediate area. pic.twitter.com/d31Sn5cIyo — SFPDSgtMike (@SFPDSgtMike) February 6, 2019 #020629WF2 UPDATE 3ed Alarm Gas explosion (construction crew) 4 buildings involved 5 workers in accounted for evacuations 1 Block circumference (police and fire will knock at your door) media update by chief of Department at 1410 hrs at cook and Geary (media staging) pic.twitter.com/OZ3PyepFSN — SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT (@SFFDPIO) February 6, 2019 UPDATE: 38/38R reroutes: IB via 2nd, Anza, Masonic, Geary; OB via Masonic, Euclid, Arguello, Geary.<doc-sep>A gas line explosion at a busy San Francisco intersection shot flames 40 feet into the air, sent people running for their lives and set five buildings on fire Wednesday afternoon. Crews working for Verizon dug into the street at Geary Boulevard and Parker Avenue in the Inner Richmond and struck a Pacific Gas and Electric Co. gas line, setting off the blast at around 1:18 p.m. At nearby Mel’s Drive-In, diners began running out of the restaurant when they heard a booming “rumble and felt the windows shake,” said Antelmo Faria, who had just sat down to have lunch with his girlfriend at the counter. As the couple ran, Faria, 38, saw flames “shooting out from the street.” Now Playing: San Francisco firefighters are battling a fire that may have started with a gas explosion at Geary Blvd. and Parker Ave. in San Francisco on Wednesday, February 6, 2019. Video: SFGATE The fire shot out of the ground for more than two hours before PG&E crews shut off a gas valve to stop it. At the scene, PG&E spokesman Blair Jones explained why it took so long: Utility workers had to painstakingly use shovels to hand-dig into asphalt to shut off the gas valves feeding the flames. Machinery couldn’t be used because the gas line is close to the surface of the street. “You can imagine having to hand-dig in asphalt. It takes time,” Jones said. “It’s also very cold right now. If we do this wrong, we shut off gas to potentially hundreds, maybe thousands more people in San Francisco, so we’re trying to do this in a way that is safe.” Dozens of residents were displaced and as many as 2,500 customers lost electricity. Wednesday evening, PG&E said power was restored to all but 235 customers. Additionally, about 300 gas customers lost their service. No one was injured or missing, according to San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White. Eight workers were digging to install fiber-optic cables when they hit a gas main, Hayes-White said. Telecommunications giant Verizon obtained the permit to dig at the location, according to public records. “MasTec, a vendor contracted by Verizon, was working at that location today. We understand that company is cooperating with investigators as they determine the root cause of the incident,” a Verizon spokeswoman said. “This fiber installation has been halted pending the outcome of an investigation by local authorities.” A representative for MasTec, a company based in Florida, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday evening. The five buildings damaged by the blaze include a mix of commercial and residential structures. One of the buildings mostly sustained water damage, Hayes-White said. Officials with the Department of Building Inspection were on the scene checking on the safety of damaged buildings. A post office across the street from the fire was also evacuated but sustained no damage, said Augustine Ruiz, a Postal Service spokesman. All mail carriers were out on their postal routes at the time of the explosion, but window clerks and customers had to clear the building. It’s unclear whether the gas line was marked, but PG&E was investigating the incident, said Andrea Menniti, a company spokeswoman. Before digging, excavators are supposed to request that PG&E locate and mark its underground pipelines in the area. California law gives PG&E two days to respond unless the excavator agrees to a different timeline. A PG&E spokesman at the scene said the request had been made to the utility — but he did not say whether the utility marked the lines. A California Public Utilities Commission staff investigation recently accused PG&E of repeatedly falsifying internal records about how quickly it responded to these requests. It’s not clear there was any similar issue in this instance. One of the badly burned buildings houses the Hong Kong Lounge II restaurant. “The place is packed at lunchtime. There’s usually a line out the door,” said Gabriel Mendez, one of the owners of the Mel’s Drive-In chain. Owners of the Hong Kong Lounge II could not be reached. A woman, who only identified herself by her last name, Kwong, said she has owned the property that houses the restaurant and two residences on a higher floor for 40 years. The residential units, she said, were each home to two tenants, and the damage made her shake her head. “I don’t know. It won’t be easy to remodel,” Kwong said in Cantonese. The restaurant’s manager called her shortly after the explosion, she said, and Kwong and her husband sped up to the scene from their home in Redwood City. Greg Hom, 32, of San Francisco was driving on Geary Boulevard when he saw a thick plume of smoke rising above the buildings in front of him. As he drove closer, he saw flames blast out and fire engines racing toward the scene. “It started getting darker and darker,” Hom said. “Then I saw the flames.” Ash was raining down on Geary Boulevard as crews worked to put out the aggressive blaze. Firefighters were standing on the roof of an H&R Block across the street from the blaze and using hoses to douse the flames. Vonnie Yung, a San Francisco resident, was driving to the post office when the explosion happened. She was preparing to make a right onto Geary Boulevard from Spruce Street when a construction worker leaped out into the street and frantically waved at her. “I was like a deer in the headlights,” Yung said. Then she heard a loud explosion and saw people running away from the restaurant and nearby businesses. The neighborhood within a one-block radius of the blaze was being evacuated, according to the Police Department. A reunification center was opened for evacuees at Mel’s. The California Pacific Medical Center, which has outpatient medical offices a few blocks from the explosion, canceled appointments because power had been shut down, according to a company spokeswoman. Geary Boulevard was to be closed overnight in a one-block area around the incident. San Francisco Chronicle staff writers Sarah Ravani, Ashley McBride, Michael Cabanatuan, J.D. Morris, Sophia Kunthara and Cat Ho contributed to this story. Gwendolyn Wu, Lauren Hernandez and Dominic Fracassa are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: gwendolyn.wu@sfchronicle.com, lauren.hernandez@sfchronicle.com and dfracassa@sfchronicle.com<doc-sep>
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — A construction site gas line explosion ignited an inferno in a San Francisco neighborhood Wednesday afternoon, burning five buildings before crews were able to cap the gas. PG&E and San Francisco Fire confirmed that the gas line feeding the massive over 30-foot-high flames had been turned off at 3:38 p.m., almost two and a half hours after the explosion. The incident happened at the corner of Geary Blvd. and Parker Ave. at 1:18 p.m. Wednesday in the city’s Jordan Park neighborhood between Laurel Heights and the Richmond District. A two-story building on the corner – site of Hong Kong Lounge II restaurant and residences on the second floor – was extensively damaged by the fire. PHOTO GALLERY: Explosion Starts Gas-Fueled Fire In San Francisco Police and fire department personnel evacuated people within a one-block radius of the fire, the fire department said. “I saw this spew of gas coming out of where they were working, and I said, ‘That’s a gas main,’ said witness John Anglin. “And within probably five seconds, all of a sudden it ignited and the flames just shot, like, straight up the air, probably 20, 30 feet up in the air. It was crazy.” San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said workers with a private contractor were installing a fiber-optic cable line when they ripped into a gas line with an excavator. The flames enveloped the excavator and spread quickly to the nearby restaurant. The smoke was thick in the area and the flames from the gas line were reaching above the buildings two-and-a-half hours after the original explosion. Five restaurant workers originally reported as missing were later accounted for, the fire department said. “I was walking through the intersection just before it exploded and I looked up and saw a bunch of people in front of me screaming,” said witness Michael Comstock “So I turned around I saw the flame growing behind me. It just kind of started erupting and I actually thought it was a bomb for a second. So I just started taking off down the street.” The fire reached a third alarm as of 1:50 p.m. At least five buildings were involved, according to the fire department. “We were in the store, we heard almost like an air noise,” Michael, a worker at a nearby Verizon store, told KPIX 5. “It sounded like pressure was building up. I saw people running across the street so I ran out. We saw flames everywhere. Construction workers saying, ‘get back.’ They said someone is probably dead. I’m just hoping everything is okay.” Sisters Cindy and Judy Chan were inside the Hong Kong Flower Lounge II restaurant–a Top 100 restaurant on San Francisco Chronicle’s list–celebrating Chinese New Year with their parents, sitting right next to the fire when it erupted. “I heard popping sounds. I thought it was fire crackers because it’s Chinese New Year,” said Cindy Chan. Within seconds, all they could see was a bright orange glow surrounding the restaurant. The Chans said restaurant staff escorted everyone in the restaurant through the kitchen and and a back banquet room to get out of the endangered restaurant. A number of patients from an endoscopy center down the street were evacuated. At least one school in the area, Roosevelt Middle School three blocks west of the fire, was reportedly being evacuated. People were being urged to avoid the area. The heavily-traveled corridor of Geary Boulevard was closed in both directions at the site of the fire and was expected to remain closed overnight for repairs as crews had to dig up the roadway in the effort to cap the gas leak. A number of San Francisco Muni routes, including the always busy 38 Geary line, have been rerouted. Some 300 customers were left without gas service and another 235 customers without power following the explosion and fire, but most of the electricity was completely restored before the night ended, according to PG&E. Only 41 of the 235 were without power at 10:15 p.m. PG&E said late Wednesday evening that there was no estimated time of when service will be up. They will have 7 customer reps working overnight to alert customers when their gas comes back online. At 7 a.m. Thursday morning, they will have 20 to 30 customer representatives in the area. Many of those who were evacuated were not going to be going to able to return Wednesday.