WAYLAND, Mich. — The owner of 4 One 2 Distillery wasn't sure if she would be able to hold their Friday night concert outside because of the Wayland gas leak that evacuated neighborhoods near South Main Street from 10:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m.
"It's been a little bit slower than it has been for a Friday," said owner Nissa Smith
Smith said there has been at least one other gas line break this month, forcing her to shut the distillery for a day as businesses continue to deal with road construction, and Gas line leaks, on South Main Street.
"On that Wednesday, they cut off our gas for the day so we weren't able to open," said Smith. "They let me go in and out of the building all day if I wanted to, but we definitely had to close our business."
Michelle Takens at Greenridge Realty was in the same boat. They were notified at 11:00 Friday afternoon that they needed to evacuate the area.
"It's been very frustrating just because you're sitting here wondering if it's safe while you're at your business," said Takens.
Wayland Fire Chief Jim Stoddard says the department takes any and all gas leaks seriously, even if that means displacing neighbors and businesses while crews fix damaged lines.
"Our first steps are to see if there are any gas that's leaking out into the buildings, evacuate the immediate area and then we look in a certain distance around the area that we need to evacuate because of the air direction," said Stoddard.
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