Some people in Scotland could be without gas for five days as engineers work to restore supplies to thousands of homes following a failure in the network.
Gas network company SGN is working to restore supplies to around 8,000 properties after the problem started on Sunday in the Falkirk area, but said it could be Friday or even into next weekend before supplies are restored to everyone.
Fourteen schools, nurseries and education facilities in the area were closed on Monday due to the issue.
SGN has set up an information centre at Camelon Community Centre and said electric hot plates and heaters are available for residents with young children and vulnerable and older people.
The company is drafting in extra engineers from across Scotland to help deal with the problem.
READ MORE: Thousands without gas on coldest night of winter so far
SGN spokesman Denis Kerby told BBC Radio Scotland: “The extreme in terms of getting everyone back on, we’ll be able to restore supplies in areas so we will introduce gas through the network and get people restored so we will start restoring as quickly as we can, that might be a couple of days, but in terms of getting everyone back on we’re looking at five days so it could be up to Friday, it could even creep into the weekend, that is really the worst-case scenario.”
We’re advising residents affected by the gas outage in #Falkirk to check the ID of people calling at their property.
— Forth Valley Police (@ForthValPolice) December 2, 2019
Anyone attending from official organisations, including voluntary sector, will have ID badges. If unsure, report concerns to us on 101 @SGNgas @falkirkcouncil
The company said a fault in a piece of equipment that regulates pressure in the gas network was to blame.
Engineers are going door to door to turn off supplies in affected properties and had visited 3,000 homes by the end of Sunday night.
In a statement, SGN said: “Thank you for your patience so far. We appreciate it’s not easy being without your gas supply in the cold weather and we’re doing all we can to get your gas back on as quickly as possible.
“It’s likely it will be several more days until everyone’s gas supplies are restored.
“In the meantime, we’re continuing to work closely with Falkirk Council and Police Scotland, as well as other local organisations, to support the community – prioritising those who are vulnerable to make sure they’re well looked after while they’re without gas.”
READ MORE: Thousands spend night without gas in big freeze
A number of schools have been closed as a result of the gas disruption according to the Falkirk Council, including:
Airth Primary School
Bainsford Primary School
Carron Primary School
Carronshore Primary School
Kinnaird Primary School
Ladeside Primary School
A reminder that a number of our schools will be closed today due to the ongoing problems with gas supply locally - find out which schools are affected here https://t.co/xb3hscLYM7
— Falkirk Council (@falkirkcouncil) December 2, 2019
Larbert Village Primary School
St Bernadette's Roman Catholic School
Stenhousemuir Primary School
Larbert High School
St Mungo's High School
Nurseries
Inchlair Nursery
Larbert Day Nursery
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