 Engineers were brought in to cut off the gas supply to the building |
A gas leak in Kent which led to homes, businesses and a supermarket being evacuated was caused by thieves taking copper piping from a disused building. The leak was reported at a timber and fencing yard, at the Trinity Trading Estate, Saffron Way, in the Milton Regis area of Sittingbourne.
A 200m (656ft) cordon was put in place while it was dealt with.
Det Insp Paul Cordier said of the thieves: "Reckless barely starts to describe... their greedy actions."
He added: "They put a lot of people at risk.
"It was gas piping and it was still connected to the gas mains, and that resulted in quite a major gas leak occurring."
'Ongoing problem'
The leak was reported by a member of the public at 1020 GMT.
The evacuation included the nearby Asda store in Mill Way, while roads within the cordon were also closed.
It was lifted at 1240 GMT when the affected area was made safe.
Engineers disconnected the gas supply and the building was boarded up.
Det Insp Cordier said thefts of copper piping and other metals were an "ongoing problem we've been experiencing", due to the rising price of scrap metal.
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