Manitoba Hydro says that all customers in Winnipeg's downtown have natural gas service once again. 

Shawna Zeilstra from Manitoba Hydro says that crews worked throughout the evening. They slowly began bringing back service and "relighting all the remaining customers."

As of 5:00 a.m. Zeilstra said crews just had cleanup left to do in the area.

45 customers lost natural gas service on Thursday afternoon when construction workers on Fort St. struck a gas line.

Thousands of people were forced to evacuate downtown buildings as a result.

Hydro crews had to go room to room in buildings to check for gas levels before allowing a staggered reentry so people could collect belongings and leave.

The City of Winnipeg and Manitoba Hydro both thanked the public for their patience.

A good reminder

Zeilstra says this incident should serve as a reminder to the public.

"Anytime customers are doing any type of work - excavation or anything like that - it's always good to give Manitoba Hydro first. We have a Call Before You Dig program just to find out what type of lines or different things might be underground before work is started, just to be safe."

For more information, or to reschedule your Manitoba Hydro line locate appointment, call 204-480-1212 within Winnipeg or 1-888-624-9376 outside of Winnipeg.

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