As Fairfax County officials continue monitoring and repair work around a home that exploded due to a gas leak last Sunday, they’ve also announced a reentry plan for residents on Buggy Whip Drive.

Most of the homes in the surrounding neighborhood had their gas service cut and about 30 families remain displaced since the explosion.

They’re anxious for the crews to find and fix the leak that destroyed a home and injured two people.

Fairfax County Fire and Rescue officials said residents will go through a multistep process, but didn’t announce when that would begin.

They have also not announced when they’ll hold a briefing to update the community on how much progress has been made, when evacuated residents may be allowed home and when gas will be restored for those without service.

Evacuated residents are being sent an online form and are to report to the established check-in location at Mobile Command Post 402, which is located outside of 5422 Buggy Whip Dr.

Officials said this ensures accountability of residents and allows incident command to coordinate the reentry sequence in a controlled and orderly manner.

When it comes to the restoration of electrical service, the Fire and Rescue Department will coordinate the restoration of electrical power to residences, confirming that it is safe to do so prior to energizing the structure.

When they begin returning gas service to the homes, the gas company’s relighting crews reconnect gas service and safely relight all pilot lights and appliances in accordance with their operational safety protocols.

Following gas restoration, a Fire and Rescue Department or truck company enters the residence to conduct a comprehensive atmospheric monitoring assessment. This ensures there are no hazardous gas readings and confirms the structure is safe for occupancy.

Once the residence has been verified safe, Fire and Rescue personnel assist homeowners with reentry and provide support as they resettle into their homes.

In a release, Fairfax County said, “this structured, multiagency process ensures that each residence is evaluated thoroughly and restored safely, prioritizing the well-being of residents while maintaining operational accountability.”

Meanwhile, some residents are saying what they’d like to see remote sensors installed near the pipelines and the neighborhood to alert them if there is a leak.

“I’m more interested in what’s happening now. What steps are we going to take to mitigate future potential problems, are we adding sensors, what kind of sensors, how are they going to function, who’s going to monitor them, who’s responsible?” resident Glen Yorkdale said.

“I was at the meeting Tuesday morning, basically the word was we’re going to depend on you and your smell to notify Fairfax Fire and Rescue if you smell gas. That’s not really an acceptable answer, especially when you consider the amount of money people pay for the services and there should be something in this day and age of technology there should be something better than that,” Yorkdale added.

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