Highway closed for gas leak

No one was injured Tuesday evening when a truck hit a natural gas line and telephone pole on U.S. 231 south of Greencastle.

An off-duty state police officer was behind a pick-up truck headed southbound in the 3300 block of south U.S. 231 when the truck veered off the road, striking a gas meter in front of a residence and snapping off a telephone pole.

Traffic on the highway was shut down at around 6:30 p.m. for about 45 minutes while crews from Vectren worked on the 1-inch gas line.

Firefighters from Greencastle arrived on the scene and were concerned about homes in the area. Fortunately the wind was not blowing, which could have spread the gas through the air, so no evacuations were necessary.

The fire department was quickly able to turn off the gas and prevented any type of explosion. The driver of the pick-up truck was not injured, according to firefighters who were on the scene, and was able to drive away from the accident.