Several homes have been evacuated as officials work this morning to repair a ruptured gas main on Fairway Drive in Opp, according to Opp police chief Mike McDonald.

McDonald said the cause of the rupture had not yet been determined and the evacuations were a safety precaution.

“We asked people to leave several homes, just to be safe,” McDonald said. “Officials with the gas company are working on it right now. This is by no means a disaster and we are working to keep it from being one.”

McDonald said the ruptured main is much less serious than rumors circulating that evacuations had been conducted in the area due to damage from lightning and other inclement weather.