porter ranch

Los Angeles County lawyers had argued that some residents who had returned home already were reporting health issues, so the Southern California Gas Co. should continue paying for temporary housing.

After spewing methane into the atmosphere for months, a storage well near Porter Ranch, Los Angeles, has been permanently sealed and taken out of service, state officials and the gas utility say.

The California Air Resources Board was recording with an infrared camera as the methane leak on the outskirts of LA was finally controlled Thursday. The leak still needs to be permanently capped.

The leak was first reported in October; since then, more than 6,000 residents were forced to evacuate the area northwest of downtown Los Angeles.