Gas meter fire in Scottsdale forces evacuations for nearby businesses

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - A gas meter at a Scottsdale business caught fire and forced people to evacuate from nearby buildings on the afternoon of Friday, June 17.

The fire department says flames broke out near Goldwater Boulevard and Scottsdale Road. 

It's not known what exactly caused the fire.

It was a close encounter for Brat Haus in Scottsdale when a power pole went up in flames on their back patio.

"Our tent looks like it got half burnt down, and we had some other furniture and some things in the back that burned. But, all the people were safe so that’s all that really mattered," says owner, Dave Andrea. "Our next door neighbor, his gas line erupted, and it affected our business. Thank God Scottsdale Fire Department was here really quickly and was able to stop the gas leak and put out the fire."

When Scottsdale Fire crews arrived, they say they found a trash fire extended to a shed, and then a gas meter fire, sending sparks flying. They worked quickly to evacuate nearby businesses.

"They actually evacuated with us pretty quickly, which was nice. We only had a couple people in the bar. We just said, ‘finish your drinks,’ and escorted quickly. Then we have just been sticking around just to make sure if we can open up the brewery again," said Tim Case, assistant production manager at Goldwater Brewing Co.

As temperatures hit more than 109 degrees while putting the fire out, more firefighters had to be called out due to the excessive heat.

After fire crews put out the fire, APS and Southwest Gas came out to work on changing the gas meter and restoring power.

Evacuations are no longer in place and businesses are back open.