Thousands of homes and businesses in the western part of downtown and St. Henri lost power late Monday morning because of a gas leak.
A construction crew near the corner of Atwater St. and Rene-Levesque Blvd., just behind the old Montreal Children's Hospital, snagged a 16-inch gas pipe, causing the leak, and causing Gaz Metro to shut eight valves off in the area.
Gaz Met suggests the work to cap the leak should be done by early- to mid-afternoon. Hydro-Quebec suggests everyone should be back online before 2 p.m.
Power is off for close to 10,000 homes and businesses in the western part of downtown, in the Shaughnessy Village area, and down the hill, into St. Henri and Little Burgundy.