Managers at the Safeway at 2600 Willow Pass Road reported a gas smell at about 10 a.m. this morning, a Contra Costa County fire dispatcher said. The managers then asked people in the store to evacuate.
A PG&E representative arrived at the store at 10:53 a.m., said spokesman J.D. Guidi, after the smell of gas was reported to the company at about 10:12 a.m.
The representative found gas readings that were above normal in a back room of the store, and turned off the gas at the store's meter, Guidi said. The gas in the back room began to dissipate after it was shut off at the meter, he added.
Guidi said PG&E began an investigation after shutting off the gas, but the representative was unable to locate a leak.
The investigation will continue until Monday, when crews also plan to reestablish the store's gas supply and repair whatever is causing abnormal gas readings.
"No leak has been found," Guidi said, "Just elevated gas readings."
Responding firefighters found no gas smell and told managers to allow people back inside the Safeway, a Contra Costa County fire dispatcher said.
"There really isn't anything. I think people are just nervous," the dispatcher said.
A manager who answered the phone at the Safeway declined to discuss the issue.
