Natural gas detected closer to community near sinkhole than prev - WSFA.com Montgomery Alabama news.

Louisiana officials will be asking property owners near a massive sinkhole for permission to do additional monitoring.

New data shows natural gas much closer to the Bayou Corne community of Assumption Parish than previously detected.

Officials said the additional testing is out of an abundance of caution.

Shallow-depth wells near the community are now indicating natural gas pressure 20 to 40 feet beneath the surface. That's much shallower than previously reported. It's still not really know what the natural gases relationship is with the bubbling in the bayou.

"The monitor is only a foot away from where the bubbling is. There's no explosive limit just a foot away from the bubbling. So as far as any distance from here, there's no concern for that to happen," said John Boudreaux, director of the Assumption Parish Office of Emergency Preparedness.

Boudreaux says while levels are not high, the Department of Natural Resources will test levels at individual homes if residents ask. They can go to the command center in Bayou Corne and fill out a request form.

The next community meeting is scheduled for Tuesday at 7 at St. Joseph the Worker church in Pierre Part.

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