Damaged pipeline in Punta Gorda affects St. Patrick's Day festivities

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. (WINK) — Crews are on scene attending to a gas leak in Punta Gorda after a third-party contractor damaged a 4-inch pipeline early Tuesday.

According to the Punta Gorda Fire Department, at 1 a.m. on Tuesday, a Tampa-based construction company struck a gas line on U.S. 41, just before the northbound bridge, while boring electrical lines.

TECO Energy crews are on scene, where they closed the gas line in the area due to the leak. WINK News contacted TECO for more details regarding this repair and whether this will impact St. Patrick’s Day festivities in Punta Gorda.

According to TECO, about 85 customers were affected by the outage. Crews do not yet have an estimated time of restoration.

Reporter Damien Alvardo contacted several businesses affected by the gas leak and the City of Punta Gorda for a statement.

City officials say that because it's a private line, they cannot do much but wait for TECO to repair the pipeline. 

Several restaurants have said that they cannot serve food until the gas is restored.

Celtic Ray Public House, a pub in Punta Gorda, announced that food will be served through the restaurant’s food truck since it cannot serve inside the building. 

WINK News will provide repair updates whenever they become available. 

Stay tuned to WINKNews.com, WINK News App, streaming, and on air for any new developments on this story.