LOTTIE - Emergency crews responded to an air leak at a natural gas drilling site Tuesday evening. 

People reported hearing a whistle sound from a drilling site on La. 81 north of Highway 190. Fearing something worse, firefighters and sheriff's deputies kept people back while experts analyzed the issue.

A spokesperson for the Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff's Office said a valve on a high-pressure compressor ruptured and leaked air. The sound is similar to the sound made when gas escapes during a drilling rig blowout.

An employee with the drilling company was able to fix the mechanical issue.  Around 8 p.m., regular operations resumed. 

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