Gas leak closes Clark County Juvenile Center

UPDATE @11:05 a.m., 3/4/15

Twenty-eight juveniles that were housed in the Clark County Juvenile Center had to be evacuated Tuesday night because of the gas leak.

This is the first time in 20 years an evacuation of this kind took place at the center, said Judge Joseph Monnin.

Some of the juveniles were released on electronic monitoring devices and others were sent to be housed in the nearby Clark County Jail, he said.

The juveniles housed in the jail are separated from adult inmates, Monnin added.

County crews are working on the gas leak and it is expected the problem should be fixed by this afternoon.

UPDATE @ 11:04 p.m. 3/3/15: The gas leak that forced the closing of the county juvenile detention center has been traced to lines owned by the county, a spokesman for Columbia Gas of Ohio said.

“To ensure safety, we shut off gas service to the building,” the spokesman, Dave Rau, said. “Columbia will work with the county to restore gas service as soon as it is safe to do so. We don’t expect the situation will change until at least mid-morning on Wednesday.”

FIRST REPORT 3/3/15

No heat because of a gas leak has prompted the closing of the Clark County Juvenile Center on Wednesday.

Lisa Dallessandris, director of the county Emergency Management Agency, said all juvenile court appearances will be rescheduled and staff should not report to work Wednesday.

The leak forced the evacuation of the building, which includes the detention center and the courts, she said, but there were no reported injuries.

Some of the detainees have been relocated to the Clark County Jail, she said, and others were housed elsewhere.

Tuesday night, crews were working to repair the leak Dallessandris said is believed to be located outside the building.