Portions of a heavily trafficked 1.5-mile stretch of U.S. Route 1 in Scarborough reopened Friday afternoon after a gas main was repaired.

Scarborough police and fire closed down the road just before 10:30 a.m. and evacuated six nearby buildings. The leak was found in front of the Comfort Inn and Suites after a contractor accidentally hit a 6-inch gas line, Deputy Fire Chief John Brennan said.

When the fire department arrived, they could smell and hear the leak “like a jet engine,” he said.

No injuries were reported and the gas line was fixed just after 12:30 p.m. One lane on the southbound side of Route 1 between Gorham Road (Route 114) and Haigis Parkway remains closed and is expected to fully reopen by 6 p.m. Friday.