CFD officials said they discovered that the gas leak originated in a pipe which vented through Sorrento Square and up Plympton Street.
"We stuffed some rags in the ends of the pipe to stop up the leak," Mahoney said.
Gas company trucks arrived around 9:30 and began to excavate the leak.
In Quincy's dining hall, Adams House students munched on pizza from Tommy's and prepared to watch "E.R." on a television set brought there by a student. Board members of the Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Transgender and Supporters' Alliance (BGLTSA), who had been evacuated from their meeting in Adams House, continued their business in Quincy.
By 10:15, gas readings were low enough that students were allowed back in their rooms.
-- Parker R. Conrad and Robert K. Silverman contributed to the reporting of this article.