A contractor digging behind the porch of 801 Seville Ave. struck the line at 4:57 p.m., Brandywine Hundred Fire Company Chief Mike DiMauro Jr. said. Nancy Huston, the house owner, said she was painting her fence when she heard the contractor yell that the line had been ruptured.
The contractor called 911, DiMauro said.
DiMauro said Conectiv workers arrived a short time later to clamp the gas line. At least eight homes on the block were evacuated as investigators searched house-to-house to check for spread of the gas leak.
The smell of gas permeated the neighborhood as residents waited to be allowed back into their homes.
Huston and several neighbors sat in folding chairs across the street as firefighters investigated. Residents were allowed to return to their homes about 6 p.m.
Huston, who was playing with her dogs outside, and other residents did not seem to mind waiting in the sun.
"It wasn't too bad," she said. "It was low-key."
