Evacuation order lifted for majority of homes near propane accident

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10:55 p.m. UPDATE:United Fire Authority has lifted the evacuation order for most of the 800 homes affected by today's propane tanker rollover.

However, because of the close proximity to the leak, 26 homes, located on either 3435 East or 3020 South, have their utilities shut off as a precaution. These residents will not be able to return home until further notice.

Crews will continue to work through the night to offload the remaining propane and let residents back in as the situation allows.

United Fire Authority has also consulted with Salt Lake County Animal Services and will evacuate any animals remaining in the 26 homes.

Stay with KSL throughout the day tomorrow for the latest updates.

Eight hundred homes remain evacuated near the mouth of Parley's Canyon more than eight hours after a propane tanker rolled there, and the situation is still far away from being resolved.

It all started around 1:30 this afternoon when a driver of a Turner Gas semi truck lost control as he was coming out of Parley's Canyon onto I-215. The truck was transporting 9,000 gallons of compressed propane when it crashed.

For more than eight hours, emergency crews have monitored a leaking tank and now determined it is just too dangerous to do anything but let the propane evaporate into the air.

"It's become evident that they are not going to be able to patch the leak or be able to stop it, so we are basically waiting for all that product to come out of the container and evaporate into the air," explained Capt. Wade Russell, with United Fire Authority.

The crash critically injured the driver of the truck and caused an emergency evacuation within a half mile of the crash. A reverse 911 call went out to 800 homes, telling the 3,000 people who live in the area to evacuate. Firefighters also went door-to-door, also telling people to leave.

"I got a reverse 911 call that said it was mandatory evacuation, so I grabbed my little puppy, and we're going to wait it out until we can go home," Phyllis Player said.

"Of the 800 homes evacuated that are still under a required evacuation, 100 homes west of the freeway evacuated at the initial incident will remain evacuated all night long, and it's indefinite as to when those people will be allowed back into their homes," Russell said.

Player will spend the night with her daughter. Others are at a Red Cross emergency center set up at Skyline High School. Volunteers have set up the center with food and water, as well as cots and blankets.

Most evacuees were able to find another place to stay, but about 25 people are still at the emergency center.

Major freeway routes were also blocked, paralyzing traffic along the east bench of the Salt Lake Valley. I-215 southbound on the east side remains closed; I-215 northbound is closed at 6200 South, and southbound to I-215 from Foothill Drive is also shut down.

"We now know that we are going to keep those hard closures until tomorrow sometime, and we know this is going to be an inconvenience for the football game tomorrow and for people traveling through the area," said Sgt. Jeff Nigbur, spokesman for the Utah Highway Patrol.

It is still unclear tonight just how long those road closures and evacuations will remain in place. It seems to depend on just how fast the propane evaporates from the tank. But with cold temperatures tonight, the gas is moving much slower, so it could still be sometime until this is over.

The United Fire Authority also wants the public to know that if anyone has a special need or is concerned about a family member or friend in the affected area, they are asked to notify the County EOC at the public numbers below: