By Robert Mills
The Lowell Sun
CHELMSFORD, Mass. — Police and firefighters evacuated about 150 people from the Best Western Hotel on Route 110 Sunday evening after a tow truck that was left unattended in the parking lot rolled into the building and ruptured a gas line.
Crews were called to the hotel, located at 168 Chelmsford St., about 6:15 p.m., and found several cinderblocks in the wall pushed in and a 1-inch gas line that feeds a heating unit split, according to Fire Capt. Hank Houle.
Natural gas was leaking from the line, which split below a shutoff valve. No one was hurt.
Some hotel guests had already evacuated, but three firefighters and a police officer went door to door to evacuate everyone else, clearing an estimated 150 people from the building, Houle said.
Crews were eventually able to shut off gas to the building, and National Grid was called to the scene.
Houle said the building inspector was called in due to the damage to the cinderblock wall, but that it was determined that only the room the truck struck had been seriously damaged.
Part of the building where the truck from Ferreira Towing made impact remained without gas Sunday night, but guests staying in that portion of the building were moved to rooms elsewhere in the hotel.
Police said a commander was busy Sunday night and could not comment, so they referred questions to Deputy Chief Scott Ubele, who was not working and did not immediately return a message left on his cell phone.
It was not immediately clear if anyone will face charges or citations, or how the truck ended up drifting into the building.
Houle said a state police truck team will examine the pickup truck.
An answering service for Ferreira Towing, which is based in Chelmsford, said no one from the company would be available to comment before Monday morning.
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