Next Steps for Wheatley Gas Leak

Based on the pattern of the last six months, officials in Wheatley are anticipating a gas release within the coming week.

Today is day 45 since the last release and the five previous releases dating back to June 2 of last year all took place between 38 and 47 days of each other.

During the past few weeks, officials have demolished buildings near the 15 Erie Street North site of the August explosion. Excavation work has taken place and two wells have been confirmed.

As a result of the work conducted, the landscape of the area has been changed significantly which officials say may impact the typical cycle time of the gas release.

Preparations have been made to safely vent and capture a sample of gas for further analysis.

The next step of the resolution process will be to bring one well to the surface, drill it and conduct tests with pressurized water to determine if an underground connection exists between the two wells.

Depending on the gas release date, residents may see heavy equipment on site within a week.

Fire and Emergency Services and security personnel will continue to be present at the site.

Resident visits to evacuated dwellings will resume when it is appropriate to do so.