It was all because of a flurry of phone calls from several businesses in the area, all reporting the odor of natural gas.

They didn't evacuate the stores, but they did keep a close eye on the area.

"We received a call of odor of natural gas, not only here at Wal Mart but also at Whitesides and in the East Lawn area of town," said Assistant Fire Chief Ken Saffell of Cumberland Trail Fire Department. "We called in Columbia Gas to come in and do an evaluation. And we did shut down all the gas to the units inside Wal Mart because they noticed an odor at so many locations inside."

The fire department had the gas shut off at the main meter.

The only business that had to close was the McDonald's inside Wal Mart.

All other businesses remained open, while the fire department and the gas company stayed at the scene.

They said they are pressure testing the lines to check for possible leaks.