St. Cloud gas leak forces evacuations, closes 2 malls temporarily 
by The Associated Press

ST. CLOUD -- A natural gas leak in St. Cloud forced the closing of two shopping malls and the evacuation of up to 150 people.

Police officers and firefighters were called out around 6:15 p.m. Wednesday. Workers were installing conduit pipes for fiber optic cable when they accidentally struck a main natural gas line, causing the leak.

The Westgate and Division Place Fashion Center malls were both closed, and between 125 to 150 people evacuated because of the high concentration of natural gas in the storm and sewer systems.

After Xcel Energy shut off the gas, the fire department ventilated the sewer systems.

The malls were closed for about 2 1/2 hours. People have since been allowed back into the businesses, but the intersection will be closed temporarily while Xcel repairs the broken pipe.

No one was hurt.