Gas line rupture prompts evacuation in Inwood

A National Grid emergency services crew is on the scene at an Inwood shopping center after a backhoe digging a trench struck and ruptured a gas line early Tuesday, forcing the evacuation of nearby stores, police and fire officials said.

Nassau County fire officials said firefighters from Inwood and Woodmere were dispatched to the Five Towns Shopping Center on Rockaway Boulevard at 9:14 a.m.

National Grid spokeswoman Elizabeth Margulies said crews arrived on the scene at 9:54 a.m. She said it was unclear how long it would take to repair the ruptured pipe.

A 911 caller reported the leak was at the rear of a new Lowe's home improvement store, officials said. The pipe was apparently ruptured by a backhoe, officials said.

Nassau County police said the area had been evacuated.

Margulies, the National Grid spokeswoman, said there were no reported injuries.