MEGHAN BARR
Associated Press

FAIRPORT HARBOR, Ohio - Built-up pressure in natural gas lines led to a house explosion in an Ohio town Monday morning, caused a series of fires and prompted a brief evacuation order for the village of about 3,000 people.



A dozen or more fires were reported in Fairport Harbor, northeast of Cleveland along Lake Erie, but only two were still burning by late morning and were under
control, said Tom Talcott, deputy chief of the fire department in nearby
Mentor.

There were no immediate reports of injuries, Mayor Frank Sarosy said.

The fires affected homes, apartments and other buildings and severely damaged at least two, Talcott said. Authorities received more than two dozen calls from people reporting gas odors.

An evacuation had been ordered, but residents instead were soon directed to instead turn off gas lines and stay inside when the situation stabilized. Nearly the whole village was affected, Talcott said, but he didn't have an estimate of how many residents had evacuated.

Residents who had gathered at a community center began returning home, and some were told gas company representatives would check each home and repair any damage.

The Dominion East Ohio gas company sent out crews. Spokesman Neil Durbin said he had no immediate details.

Sarosy told WJW-TV that a main gas line that had sent gas back into some homes has been
shut off. All schools in the village closed, and Sarosy was urging businesses to close, too.