OAK HARBOR, Ohio — More than 1,000 homes and businesses in Oak Harbor were left without heat over the weekend after a high-pressure gas leak forced the shutdown of all gas lines in the village. The leak, which began last Thursday, was located just south of Oak Harbor, disrupting natural gas service to the area.
Fred Petersen, the director of the Ottawa County Emergency Management Agency, confirmed that the leak involved a high-pressure gas supply line, which serves the entire village of Oak Harbor. Columbia Gas crews worked tirelessly throughout the weekend to make repairs and visit each residence and business to relight gas fuses, but many were forced to endure chilly temperatures in the interim.
Bryan Atwater, a local resident, described the sound of the leak as “like a jet going off,” underscoring the severity of the situation. Despite the cold, Oak Harbor residents did their best to stay warm in creative ways.
Kyle Hollis, who moved to Oak Harbor over 20 years ago from Florida, explained that he relied on layers of clothing and stayed bundled up in bed with his cats to stay warm. “I’d get up to go to the bathroom or to get something to eat and I’d go right back to bed,” said Hollis. Having experienced several hurricanes in Florida, Hollis remarked that the situation was worse than those natural disasters, as there was no place to escape to for warmth during the outage.
Larry Camp, another Oak Harbor resident, described the outage as a “minor inconvenience” despite the discomfort. “As my house cooled down, I just got a couple electric heaters, put them by my easy chair, and just hung out there,” Camp said. He added that while it was uncomfortable, he was able to manage the situation until gas service was restored.
By April 7, gas service had been gradually restored to many residents, with Columbia Gas reporting that by 2 p.m., only about 150 customers remained without service. Crews planned to continue working throughout the night and on April 8 to restore gas to the remaining homes and businesses.
The gas shutdown affected over 1,700 homes and businesses in total. As the situation progresses, local authorities are hopeful that full restoration will be completed soon, bringing much-needed relief to the community.