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  "path": "/news/centreville-explosion-neighborhood-remains-evacuation-zone-gas-crews-plan-purge-line",
  "publishedAt": "2026-02-17T12:17:49.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.fox5dc.com",
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    "NTSB takes over Centreville gas leak investigation after 50+ families displaced",
    "Centreville explosion, fire forces families to evacuate from neighborhood"
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  "textContent": "Utility crews are still trying to pinpoint the exact location of a gas leak in a Fairfax County neighborhood after a natural‑gas explosion rocked a Centreville community on Sunday.\n\nAt a Tuesday press conference, Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Assistant Chief of Operations Eric Craven said crews are continuing to check multiple gas lines as the investigation moves forward.\n\nCraven said 46 homes remain evacuated and 82 homes are without natural‑gas service. Fire crews are entering homes every hour to monitor gas concentrations, which he said are trending downward.\n\nREAD MORE: NTSB takes over Centreville gas leak investigation after 50+ families displaced\n\nOfficials believe they have shut down nearly all gas service feeding the affected area. Washington Gas has multiple dig sites open as crews work to access and assess the lines.\n\nEvacuated residents may return briefly to their homes with fire department escorts between noon and 9 p.m. Tuesday, Craven said, and all requests are being honored. Residents are expected to remain displaced for another 24 to 72 hours.\n\nDepending on where the leak is ultimately found, the evacuation zone could expand to a quarter‑mile radius, affecting up to 100 additional homes. Residents would receive three to four hours notice if that becomes necessary.\n\nCraven said displaced residents are staying with family, friends or in hotels, with reimbursement options available through insurance and utility companies.\n\nAbout 100 residents met with county officials and utility representatives Tuesday afternoon for updates. A Tuesday night town hall is scheduled for additional information. The National Transportation Safety Board now has full investigative authority over the incident, Craven said.\n\nREAD MORE: Centreville explosion, fire forces families to evacuate from neighborhood\n\nFOX 5’s Melanie Alnwick, reporting from the scene Tuesday morning, said neighbors captured video of the blast at Quail Pond Court and Belle Plains Drive, showing flames and debris moments after the home exploded. Remarkably, the resident inside and a neighbor who pulled him out suffered only minor injuries.\n\nSKYFOX drone video shows a wide grassy utility corridor running through the Sequoia Farms neighborhood, where natural‑gas transmission pipelines run underground.\n\nThe explosion happened just before 10 p.m. Sunday. Washington Gas was already in the neighborhood investigating reports of a gas odor at the time, Alnwick said.",
  "title": "Centreville explosion: Crews still working to pinpoint source of gas leak"
}