Chester County Briefs are concise reports on what’s happening around Chester County. This morning:

Construction Accident Causes Gas Fire in Caln

On Wednesday morning around 8:45 a.m., a crew from Fidelity Construction working on Sylvan Drive replacing water lines in Caln, witnessed a gas line erupt into flames.

A track hoe that was digging in the street cut both a gas and an electrical line, causing the sparks from the electrical line to ignite the leak from the damaged gas pipe. While underground utilities were marked in the area, the street crossing unfortunately was not.

PECO responded to the scene, but the fire continued to burn for nearly two hours before they managed to gain access to shut it off. After the fire was extinguished, responding firefighters sprayed water on the area to cool it off so that PECO workers could finish their task.

Some residents were evacuated from their homes during the event, but luckily, no injuries were reported.

Get Ready for Saturday’s Downingtown Christmas Parade

The Downingtown Good Neighbor Christmas Parade will take place this Saturday, starting from 3 p.m. The 1.7 mile parade route will start at Gabel Avenue in the west and run along Lancaster Avenue to Whiteland Ave in the east.

This year’s parade competition will feature eight floats fighting for the honor of being named the best of the year, along with the eight bands performing in the event. The Parade Grand Marshal will be decorated United States Army senior aviator Bud Bruton from Bruton Financial Advisors.

Pre-Parade activities will include Brother Bob and Company and the Octorara Intermediate School band playing Christmas music and the Touch of Class Dance Studio performing their holiday repertoire.

“Our parade gets bigger and bigger each year,” said in a news release Dianne Plaugher, parade chairwoman, “and with mild temperatures predicted for Saturday, we expect plenty of new entries and thousands of people along the route.”

Route 372 in Coatesville Closed by PAW

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has announced that Route 372, closed by Pennsylvania American Water between Sixth Avenue and Spruce Street for pavement repair, should reopen by this afternoon.

Until the route is reopened, traffic will be detoured via Route 82 and Strasburg Road. As a precaution, drivers should add some extra time into their travel schedule through this area.

The work will be completed by PAW under a PennDOT Highway Occupancy Permit.

Motorists can check conditions on over 40,000 miles of road by visiting http://www.511PA.com. The site also provides free 24/7 access to traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to over 770 traffic cameras. The information is also available from an app compatible with most mobile devices, through calling 5-1-1, or by following local PennDOT information on Twitter at 511PAPhilly.

Hundreds Attend Festive 5K in Coatesville

Showing a generous heart and good community spirit, hundreds of runners and walkers gathered last Saturday at Scott Middle School for the sixth annual Festive 5K run, 1-mile walk, an occasion that has become a beloved holiday tradition in the area.

The event is organized by the Brandywine Health Foundation, with all proceeds benefiting the Coatesville Youth Initiative which focuses on promoting positive youth development, addressing social concerns, and strengthening family relationships.

Among the 485 excited participants were students, teachers and administrators of the Coatesville Area School District, including Superintendent, Dr. Cathy Taschner, and Assistant to the Superintendent for Curriculum and Learning, Dr. Kimberly Donahue.

The top three female winners of the race were Brooke Hutton, Emily Shaw, and Savannah Shaw, all of whom generously donated their prize money back to the Coatesville Youth Initiative, while the top spots on the male side were won by Owen Dawson, Kyle Dawson, and Johnny Carnes.

Dinniman Expresses Reservations over the Approval of Aquifer Water Sales

On Wednesday, the Delaware River Basin Commission approved the proposal made by the Artesian Water Company to withdraw water from the Broad Run Aquifer for commercial sale.

The expanded water monitoring program and other protections that were advocated for by local residents, concerned the project would deplete their wells, were included in the approved proposal.

Senator Andy Dinniman, who is at the forefront of opposition to this project, remarked that despite these protections, he remains concerned about the sheer size of the project as well as its potential impact on the region.

“I still do not believe that Artesian has demonstrated the need to take hundreds of thousands of gallons of water per day from the aquifer,” said Dinniman, “and I am disappointed that the DRBC did not move to scale down the size of the withdrawal.”