D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services personnel responded to a gas leak at the Letterman House condominiums Wednesday night.
FEMS Communications Director Gretchen Michael said FEMS responded to reports of an odor coming from the nine-story building at 7:55 p.m., where it found elevated carbon-monoxide levels and evacuated all residents. After ventilating the building and determining the boiler room as the source of the leak, FEMS tweeted at 10:33 p.m. that all gas and CO levels in the building had returned to normal.
“Residents are able to reoccupy the building at this time with no displacement,” the tweet stated.
Letterman House Building Manager Viktor Valente said he received a phone call about a “major gas leak” in the building coming from the second floor. He said one of the residents smelled gas and went to the Foggy Bottom fire station to report it.
Valente said FEMS personnel told him there was a “large amount of gas” in the building, and there was a risk of explosion.
“There are guys inside right now testing,” Valente said. “They’re in the garage with little machines testing the gas levels and seeing what’s happening.”
When Valente spoke to The Hatchet on scene around 9:45 p.m., he said there was no estimate for when the building would be safe to reenter. A GW Police Department officer on scene told residents they could wait in the University Student Center while FEMS ventilated the building.
“My goal is to fix it tonight. I don’t want anyone in hotels. I want them in there where they pay rent, in their units and the nice, conditioned air, drinking filtered water, having a great time,” Valente said.
While units investigated the source of the leak, FEMS blocked off the 2000 block of F Street to pedestrians. Residents in other buildings on the block, like The Statesman, were not evacuated, but FEMS personnel asked residents to vacate the premises if they came out of their buildings.
Victoria Wilcher, a Letterman House resident, said she was in the shower when she heard the alarm and evacuated the building. She said she had left her cat behind and hoped the gas had not reached her eighth-floor apartment.
“At first they were pushing us further down the street. And then now we’re able to be a bit closer. Kind of on edge because my cat’s still up there,” Wilcher said.
