04:18 PM PDT on Tuesday, July 11, 2006

By ANTONIA GIEDWOYN, kgw.com Staff

A gas leak forced the evacuation of a Greyhound bus station in Northwest Portland and shut down several streets Tuesday afternoon.

Sky-8 photo

The scene of the gas leak in Northwest Portland.

The leak occurred at the intersection of NW 6th Avenue and Hoyt Street about 12:30 p.m., officials said. Northwest Broadway Street and surrounding blocks reopened shortly after 2 p.m.

A contractor working for Northwest Natural Gas was using a concrete saw and accidentally cut through the company's 12-inch gas main at the front of the bus depot, according to officials with NW Natural.

There were no flames and no one was injured. Gas readings taken inside the station buildings early on found no measurable amount of gas inside, still, the bus station didn't reopen until nearly four hours after the leak. Officials said it's very fortunate the leak occurred outdoors.

Only the bus station was evacuated; the train station remained open.

The gas could be smelled from several blocks away and could be heard hissing, according to bystanders.

(KGW reporter Vince Patton contributed to this report.)