The exit plan
In order, and nothing extra.
Stop. Don’t touch anything electrical
No light switches on or off, no unplugging, no garage door opener, no doorbell. Any switch can spark, and a spark is the one thing the room can’t have.
Get everyone outside
Walk out, leaving the door open behind you to vent. Take people and pets; leave everything else.
Call from a safe distance
Use your phone outside, well away from the house. Call the gas utility’s emergency line or 911. They respond to gas odor calls around the clock, at no charge.
Don’t go back in
Not for wallets, not to open windows, not to check the stove. Wait for the utility to test the air and make the area safe.
Why the rules are so strict
Natural gas is odorized with mercaptan, that rotten-egg smell, precisely so you get a warning before concentrations become dangerous. But your nose can’t tell you how much gas is present or where it’s pooling. At the wrong concentration, any ignition source, a light switch, a pilot light, static, a phone, can be enough. That’s why every step of the protocol is about removing ignition sources and removing you.
A faint whiff near the stove that disappears immediately might be a blown-out burner. Treat anything more than that, persistent smell, hissing sounds, dead houseplants near a gas line, as the real thing.
After the utility makes it safe
The utility’s job ends at making the situation safe, they’ll shut off the gas and tag the problem, but they don’t repair your piping or appliances. That’s where a licensed plumber with gas credentials comes in: repairing the line or connection, pressure-testing the system, and getting it inspected where required so the gas can be turned back on properly.
“With a gas smell, being wrong outside is embarrassing for five minutes. Being wrong inside is a different category of wrong.”
The bottom line
Leave first, call second, repair third. And if your home has gas appliances, put carbon monoxide alarms near sleeping areas today, they’re the other half of gas safety, and the half that works while you’re asleep.