FARMINGTON -- The driver who struck a gas main Friday, sparking a large natural gas fire, died in the accident, according to police.
Police haven't released the man's name and an investigation is ongoing.
The fire started about 3:45 p.m. after the driver hit a natural gas "riser" near Main Street and Double Springs Road, said Rich Davis, Black Hills Energy spokesman. A riser is a pipe connecting a gas line to a meter. The damaged riser was connected to a high-pressure line, Davis said, and the flames ignited shortly after impact.
Multiple police and fire agencies were called to the fire, which lasted roughly nine hours until gas was shut off around 12:35 a.m., police said. No customers lost gas while crews worked to extinguish the fire and repair the gas line, Davis said.
An evacuation order had been lifted by Saturday morning and Main Street was re-opened. Black Hills Energy will continue to work on repairing the line and gas service shouldn't be interrupted, Davis said.
Southwestern Electric Power Co. also had restored power to the area. It was unclear whether SWEPCO shut off power or whether a circuit breaker tripped, Davis said.
Firefighters used a steady stream of water to keep the flames at bay while crews dug across the street to find the isolation vale on the 4-inch gas line. Firefighters were spraying nearby buildings and power poles to keep things watered down until the fire was out. Dozens of onlookers stood behind caution tape and recorded the blaze with their phones.
A duplex was destroyed in the blaze but there were no injuries to the residents, according to the fire department.
Fire Chief Mark Cunningham said the combination of electricity and gas made the fire difficult to contain.
John Luther, director of the Washington County emergency management department, praised the cooperation between entities.
"There's an immediate team effort," Luther said.
Black Hills Energy is a natural gas utility serving 429,000 customers in Arkansas, Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming, according to its website. The company has about 1,500 customers in Farmington, Davis said.