Carlton Road in Nottingham was closed and people were evacuated from homes and businesses after a digger cut through a gas pipe.
The emergency services were called to the construction site of a new Lidl supermarket close to King Edward Park just after 9am on Wednesday morning.
Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service says the leak was stopped just after 11am and the road-reopened at around 11.40am.
People living nearby say they were asked to leave their homes by builders and 999 crews after a strong smell of gas filled the air.
Lidl confirmed the building work was to blame and are investigating.
Josh Stevens, who lives on Carlton Road, said: There was a bang on the door just about it was a builder who said we had to evacuate, and upon leaving the house we were hit by the strong smell of gas.
“We could see a digger behind fencing with a fire marshall speaking to builders trying to find what happened, we were then escorted out of the cordon.”
He added the construction site is part of building work connected to a new Lidl store being built on Carlton Road.
Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue service says around 60 people were evacuated from their homes to Russell Youth Club, on Lowdham Street.
A Lidl spokesman said: “We can confirm that a gas pipe was unfortunately damaged during construction works.
“As a precaution, Carlton Road was closed whilst the leak was rectified and has now reopened.
“We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused. We will be carrying out a full and thorough investigation into the matter.”
