Legacy 925 was forced to close early on the afternoon of Wednesday, March 28 when a natural gas line ruptured outside the 208,000-square-foot building located at 925 N. Lapeer Rd. in Oxford Township.

According to Fire Chief Pete Scholz, a worker using a power auger damaged an underground polyethylene gas line while installing bollards to prevent vehicles from hitting utility meters affixed to the building’s exterior.

The line, which had a diameter of an inch and a quarter, was located just outside the entrance to The Yo Club (Suite 111), right below the meters, on the southeast side of the building.

As a precautionary safety measure, everyone inside the building was evacuated and the 30-plus businesses housed in Legacy 925 were closed for the rest of the day.

“We went through and did a sweep of the building to make sure that there wasn’t any gas inside,” Scholz said.

No gas was detected, according to Scholz, but there was concern about the possibility of it entering the building via either the wind or the facility’s HVAC rooftop units.

Consumers Energy workers made the necessary repairs and Legacy 925 was able to reopen the next day.

Scholz noted “MISS DIG was never called” prior to the augering that damaged the gas line.

“The worker told me that he never called because he thought he knew where the line was,” the chief said. “Anytime you’re digging like that, you’re supposed to call.”

Since 1970, MISS DIG System, Inc. has operated an underground utility safety notification system for Michigan.

One toll-free call (811 or 800-482-7171) is all it takes to have MISS DIG notify its more than 1,700 members to have them come out, locate their underground facilities and mark them using various colors. For example, the color yellow denotes gas, oil, steam and petroleum facilities.

Michigan Public Act 174 of 2013 requires anyone who engages in, or is responsible for, the planning and performance of any type of excavation, such as grading, demolition, cultivating, augering, blasting or boring, to give MISS DIG advance notice of at least three full business days, according to the website www.missdig.org.

Scholz said it’s “critical” for even homeowners to call MISS DIG before they start digging or drilling on their property.

“I’d say anything deeper than a foot, you should always call,” he said.