More than a year after a natural gas transmission line exploded beneath a San Bruno neighborhood, barricades that blocked road access to the blast site were taken down today.
San Bruno Mayor Jim Ruane, City Council members and a handful of residents picked up the barricades across Glenview Drive and moved them aside, reopening the street to foot and car traffic.
"This is another important step for all of us," Ruane said.
The barricades had been in place since the explosion and fire on Sept. 9, 2010, which killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes.
An investigation into the disaster by the National Transportation Safety Board concluded last month, freeing the city to fill the crater that the explosion left near Glenview Drive and Earl Avenue.
A ceremony to fill in the crater was held Sept. 20, and crews this week finished repaving the surrounding roads.
One resident who lives west of the blast site said he is happy that it won't take his wife as long to drive to the grocery store, but that it might still take some time before the newly paved streets feel like the old neighborhood.
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"Some people won't drive over it yet," said the resident, who declined to give his name. "Too many memories."
