| Pupils had already started to arrive when a contractor’s digger damaged a gas main around 8.40am. Buses carrying children to school were turned away and pupils already there were either sent home or taken to Dalgety Bay Sports and Leisure Centre.
Ambulance control staff confirmed five people had been taken to Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline with breathing problems after inhaling gas. However, the three adults and two children are believed to be recovering well.
A Scotland Gas Networks spokesperson said, “We can confirm that just before 9am a contractor working in Inverkeithing damaged a six-inch main.
“This did not cause any disruption to gas supplies to homes or businesses but, as a precaution, because of gas escape, a local school was shut.
“Our repair team is on site assessing how best to go about repairing the pipe.
“The gas is no immediate safety threat to the public but the situation needs to be monitored very closely and that is what the team on site is doing.”
The leak closed roads and railways for a time. Travellers on the Fife Circle Line from Edinburgh were stranded at Dalmeny as trains were prevented from crossing the Forth Bridge for safety reasons. Services re-started around 9.30am.
Around the school, the A921 road was closed between Hillend and Dalgety Bay and the B981 was also partially closed.
A Fife Police spokesperson said, “The wind direction meant gas was blown across the A921 and railway line. The railway was later reopened after it was assessed the gas was being adequately dispersed and did not pose a threat to public safety.” |
