ST. CLAIRSVILLE, Ohio --
A garbage truck lost its brakes going downhill Friday morning, crashing into a gas regulator station and causing a massive gas leak.
Residents of the East Liverpool neighborhood said it's a miracle the entire neighborhood didn't explode.
"I hope I never have to witness anything like that again," said Kathy Antill, one of several residents living near the site of the crash who called 911.
Two men were inside the garbage truck and suffered minor injuries when it crashed into the Columbia Gas regulator station near Avondale Street and Bradshaw Avenue.
"I put the phone down and then I ran out and through the mud trying to let the men in the truck know that help was coming," Antill said. "The way that it was on the side and was all smashed up in the front really looked like they were going to be badly hurt, so thank God they weren't hurt that bad."
Shannon David, another witness who tried to help, said, "I seen a finger, like a hand, trying to come up through the glass but I couldn't get up there."
David, who is a nurse's aide, ran outside when she heard the crash and immediately smelled gas.
"I thought the whole place was going to blow, so I grabbed my kid and my husband and told them to get the heck out of the house," David said.
Witnesses said schoolchildren were standing at a nearby bus stop when the truck came flying down the hill.
"There are fire poles here that it could have stuck and caused ignition to the gas after the leak," said East Liverpool Police Patrolman Jim Krawiec. "There are many factors that could have we are very, very fortunate."
Columbia Gas crews had the gas regulator station shut down within 20 minutes and were working Friday afternoon to secure the area and restore service to customers.
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