Here’s why a major Lexington road closed during Tuesday’s commute

A major Lexington road was affected for more than seven hours and businesses were evacuated after a “large” natural gas leak Tuesday, according to Tweets from Lexington police and county officials.

Crews shut down all lanes of Sunset Boulevard near Old Cherokee Road at about 3 p.m., according to the Tweets. The road gradually reopened Tuesday evening and was open in full around 10:30 p.m., police said.

Officials evacuated businesses across the 5400 block of the road, including Ruby Tuesday, Synovus Bank, NTB Tire, Security Federal Bank, First Community Bank, Smashburger, Vitamin Shop, Mattress Firm, Marcos Pizza and Office Depot, according to the Tweets.

Lexington School District One tweeted that the leak affected some local schools, including Lexington Middle and some River Bluff High students, according to a Tweet. Buses were re-routed.

This story was originally published December 11, 2018 at 4:00 PM.

Emily Bohatch

The State

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Emily Bohatch helps cover South Carolina’s government for The State. She also updates The State’s databases. Her accomplishments include winning multiple awards for her coverage of state government and of South Carolina’s prison system. She has a degree in Journalism from Ohio University’s E. W. Scripps School of Journalism. Support my work with a digital subscription