Road construction crews working on Lakeview Boulevard near its intersection with Fountain Street hit a gas line Monday, and people in the neighborhood could smell the natural gas.

City Engineer Steven Jahnke said the construction crew from Ulland Brothers was working on putting in a new sidewalk when it hit the line.

Alliant Energy and the Albert Lea Fire Department responded quickly to the scene, and they were close to having it repaired at 5:15 p.m., Jahnke said.

The street project is one of several neighborhood improvement projects taking place this summer, and includes the mill, overlay, curb replacement and sidewalk replacement.

On Lakeview Boulevard the reconstruction is from Fountain Street to Vine Avenue.

Readers in the area called the Albert Lea Tribune about the leak.