A recent gas leak on Thursday afternoon in Durham led to an emergency evacuation near Pleasant Drive on Angier Avenue for at least 9 hours.

Around 10:01 p.m., according to the Durham Fire Department, Angier Avenue was reopened for everyone, and all residents were back in their homes safely.

According to CBS.17.com, the Durham Fire Department stated the gas leak occurred somewhere around 1 p.m. A gas tank was leaking, which alerted the fire authority in the area. The tank was located between railroad tracks and Angier Avenue. However, the gas leak spread on Angier Ave, from Jones Circle to Cortez Drive.

Gas Leak Near Angier Avenue in Durham

All residents within the quarter-mile radius of the gas leak were evacuated. By 4:22 p.m., the evacuation area reached a half-mile. It has been claimed that the propane tanks were offloading the gas from the tank when it got leaked.

The Fire Department stated- 

“The leaking tank is a 30,000-gallon propane tank and the gas company is on scene mitigating the leak,” If you are within the half-mile evacuation area, please evacuate immediately. If you smell gas, extinguish any open flames, do not smoke, do not shut off or start electric appliances or lights, and leave the area until it is declared safe.”

Even the public school buses were put on halt on Thursday afternoon because of the leak tragedy. Durham County EMS, County Sheriff’s Office, Durham County Emergency Management, and Durham Fire Department worked hand-in-hand to handle the crises.

One of the residents, Hayley Faircloth, living on Angier Avenue, talked to Wral News and stated:

“I tried to rush to get to my sister and my niece and they would not let me go get my three year-old niece. They would not let me drive down the road. They told me I had to walk if I wanted to go get her. So that’s what I tried to do and then got told that I shouldn’t walk and I still did because it’s my little sister and my little niece.”

Also Read: Watch: Dubai Floods Gushing Every Year As Storm Dumps 1.5 Years of Rain

Recently, parts of the UAE and Dubai experienced heavy thunderstorms, damaging many parts of the desert city-state. The nation’s roadways, the city’s driverless metro rail system, and the airports experienced major flooding, reported The Guardian.

As per various news agencies, Dubai received a year and a half’s worth of rain in a single storm that occurred on Tuesday. 

Dubai experienced the most rainfall, only less than Fujairah. The UAE’s eastern coast experienced rainfall of 145 millimeters, being the heaviest rainfall on Tuesday. 

The UAE’s northernmost emirate, Ras al-Khaimah, reported one casualty. Police reported that a 70-year-old man passed away as floodwater swept his vehicle. 

This incident is the largest rainfall event that the UAE experienced in 75 years. People inside the Mall of the Emirates were amazed to witness parts of the ceiling coming down and water gushing down from the ceiling. 

As per CNN, the Deira City Centre and the Sharjah City Centre also got damage due to continuous rain. 

Record Breaking Rainfall For The UAE

People at the airport on arrival faced problems due to floodwater covering the entire area. Deeper-than-expected water also covered huge parts of roads.

Tanker trucks were sent by the authorities onto the highways and the streets so that excess water can be pumped. Water gushed into a few homes as well. 

Within a period of 24 hours, Dubai experienced more than 142 millimeters of rainfall. According to data from the Dubai International Airport, on average, UAE gets 94.7 millimeters of rainfall. 

Due to the UAE’s presence in the Arabian Peninsula, it does not receive much rain. The arid nation experiences hardly rain during the cold winter months. 

Many roads in the UAE lack adequate drainage systems as the entire nation doesn’t get much rain throughout the year. Thus, the issue of flooding occurred.

Also Read: Indonesia Volcano Mount Ruang Eruption Video Viral, Over 11,000 Evacuated In Northern Indonesia

Canada’s biggest gold heist is the talk of the town currently. Among five South Asians who were arrested at Toronto airport, two men were Indo-Canadian, reported BBC.

This incident occurred on April 17, 2023, at Canada’s biggest airport. 

In this gold heist, foreign currency worth 2.5 million Canadian Dollars along with 6,600 gold bars worth 20 million Canadian Dollars were stolen from an “Air Canada storage depot at Pearson International Airport.

Police announced the gold heist on Tuesday at Toronto airport. Good said that the 54-year-old Parmpal Sidhu, who is an Air Canada employee, is also among those five men who were apprehended.

The 40-year-old Amit Jalota from Oakville near Toronto is the other Indo-Canadian on the arrest list. 

The identities of the three other men who were apprehended are 35-year-old Prasath Paramalingam hailing from Brampton, 37-year-old Ali Raza hailing from Toronto and 43-year-old Ammad Chaudhary hailing from Brampton. 

Under Project 24K, a long-year investigation was carried out, and then the arrests were announced. 

The police have also issued a warrant for 31-year-old Simran Preet Panesar. At the time of the theft, Simran was an Air Canada employee. A Canada-wise warrant has been issued for Arsalan Chaudhary and Archit Grover as well. 

A total of 6600 gold bars which weigh over 400 kg along with forex were flown to Toronto from Zurich by “two Swiss banks, Raiffeisen and Valcambi, for transactions” on April 17, 2023.

Canada- How The Gold and Forex Was Stolen?

As per CNN, both the Swiss banks hired Brink’s, a security company based in Miami for supervision and security of transportation of the shipments to Toronto. 

The shipments were transferred from Zurich in two cargo ships with the terms “GOLDBARS” and “BANKNOTES” written on them. These shipments were deposited at the storage of Air Canada. 

Three hours later, by producing fake copies of the waybill, an individual claimed both the shipments from the Air Canada security personnel. 

Police said, “A short time later, a forklift arrived with a container of gold and foreign currency and loaded it into the rear of the suspect’s truck.”

The same day when the employees of Brink’s reached around 9.30 p.m to pick up the shipments, but it was gone, as Forbes stated.

Thus, the security company has sued Air Canada for “negligently and carelessly” handling the cargo. 

Brink’s states, “Upon receipt of the fraudulent waybill, AC personnel released the shipments to the unidentified individual, following which the unidentified individual absconded with the cargo.”

Also Read: Indonesia Volcano Mount Ruang Eruption Video Viral, Over 11,000 Evacuated In Northern Indonesia