About 30 people in Maple Ridge were forced to leave their beds in favour of seats aboard a transit bus overnight.
Their neighbourhood — near 221st Street and Selkirk Avenue — was evacuated around 11:00 p.m. because of a natural gas leak, which RCMP are blaming on copper thieves.
Police say the cheats broke into an empty home and swiped some copper pipe, but in the process of doing so, cut a natural gas line.
It took Fortis crews several hours to pinpoint the leak.
Everyone was allowed back home by 3:00 a.m.
The thieves got away.
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