A car slammed into a building near downtown Salt Lake City and sheared off a gas line at the meter, prompting at least one home to be evacuated as crews rushed to contain the leak. The crash happened close to the Capitol, triggering a hazmat response while officials worked to shut off the escaping gas.
Crash Sends Crews Scrambling Near the Capitol
According to KUTV, Salt Lake City Fire Department crews responded after a car drove into a building near the Capitol and broke a gas line at the meter, leading to the evacuation of one home. Separately, ABC4 reported the same type of incident, describing a gas leak at an apartment complex near 500 N Center Street after a vehicle hit and sheared off a gas line at the building in that area. That outlet reported that two duplexes were evacuated until Enbridge Gas could shut off the gas, a different count than the single-home evacuation described in KUTV's report. The discrepancy between the two accounts has not been resolved by the available reporting.
Citizen identified the vehicle involved as a blue Kia Soul and placed the crash at 517 North Center Street, reporting that the car sheared off a gas meter, breaking the gas lines and causing a leak.
Hazmat Crews Respond as Situation 'De-escalates'
ABC4 reported that a hazmat team was on scene as crews worked to address the ruptured line. The outlet also reported that officials described the incident as “de-escalating” as the response continued.
Photojournalist Jake Emerson was credited with coverage for KUTV, while a file photo from the crash scene was credited to photographer Aubree B. Jennings.
Gas Line Ruptures Have Hit Salt Lake Before
Ruptured gas lines have forced evacuations elsewhere in the Salt Lake Valley before. In April 2025, a gas leak ignited a fire in a South Salt Lake neighborhood and forced nearly 400 evacuations, according to kutv.com. Enbridge told the outlet that a fallen power line had damaged the natural gas line, which fueled the fire, and crews were able to secure the line around 9 p.m. before beginning repairs to the damaged pipeline. Gas service was restored to normal operating conditions by the next morning, and residents were able to return home, per the same report.
In a separate incident, abc4.com reported that approximately 10 homes were evacuated during a natural gas leak near 1200 E 500 S in Salt Lake City, with Salt Lake City Fire Department hazmat crews on site. That report noted that westbound traffic on 500 S was restricted to one lane, and 1200 E was closed between 400 S and 500 S, while crews worked the scene.
