PITTSBURGH -- A gas line rupture in North Side forced some residents out of their homes late Thursday night.

The eight-inch break happened at the intersection of Federal and Jacksonia streets around 10:30 p.m.

Gas company officials said crews were working in the area and adding a new gas line for new homes when a crew hit the line, causing the break.

Nine people were asked to leave their homes until the break was fixed.  They were let back in sometime late Friday morning.

“I was woken up in the middle of the night by someone pounding on the front door telling people we needed to get out,” Ben Hayes said.

Janie Campbell and her family were also evacuated. She said the smell of gas got worse throughout the day and into the night.

“The smell was all the way in the house. I was on the back porch and could smell it like it was right under my nose before they even got over here with the digging,” Campbell said. “I don’t think anyone wanted to light any matches or anything around here.”

Officials said if the gas main had exploded instead of just breaking, the entire block could have been in serious danger.