Vehicle Shears Gas Meter, Sparks Evacuation
An SUV hit a parked car, sheared a gas meter, then crashed three feet into a house around 7:30 p.m. on the 5900 block of Placencia Street in Goleta Saturday night.
The small neighborhood is just east of the Santa Barbara Airport.
People who live in the home say no one was in the bedroom where the SUV struck, but others were just a few feet away in the living room.
No one was hurt.
Witnesses say they heard a loud crash, and windows breaking, followed by a loud hissing noise.
53 residents were evacuated from the surrounding homes as a precaution due the possibility that the ruptured gas line could spark an explosion.
The Red Cross was called in to offer food, water, blankets and shelter to the victims.
The Santa Barbara County Fire Department, California Highway Patrol and Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s deputies, safely evacuated all residents about 500 yards away on Fairview Avenue.
Southern California Edison and the Gas Company fixed the line and residents were allowed back in their homes by midnight.
The 15 residents who live in home that the SUV crashed into, have not been allowed to return because of the damage.
They say they should be able to return home in about a week.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office says 36-year-old Edgar Reza-Gutierrez of Goleta was arrested for driving under the influence.
He was living in the area and was one of the residents who was evacuated due to the gas leak from the accident he caused.
Reza-Gutierrez was located by Sheriff’s deputies during the evacuation of the surrounding neighborhood.
The Sheriff’s Office say he was the driver of the SUV and was highly intoxicated.
