BEND, OR -- A busy section of Northeast Third Street in Bend was closed for more than four hours Tuesday, after a utility crew cut a gas line. Bend Fire responded to the alley between Taco Bell and Baskin Robbins just before 10 a.m., and found a 4" high-pressure main gas line had been cut.

Police and road crews shut down Second, Third and Fourth streets, between Olney and Greenwood, as well as portions of First and Fifth. Businesses in the immediate area were evacuated, including two preschools, while others in the surrounding area were told to shelter in place and avoid doing anything that could cause a spark. 

Cascade Natural Gas crews dug up the line and installed valves to shut it down, monitoring for gas concentrations while they worked. The area reopened just before 2:30 p.m.