A natural gas leak forced the closure of a busy stretch of Highway 11 in Oro-Medonte.

The gas leak was the result of a single vehicle crash Tuesday night along Gasoline Alley -- just north of Barrie.

OPP Sergeant Peter Leon says the vehicle was travelling southbound when it went off the road and crashed into an abandoned motel at around 6 PM.

He says the vehicle ended up going through the structure and ruptured a gas line.

He says it also caused the roof of the building to collapse and the floor of the structure also collapsed as a result of the impact.

Leon says crews from Enbridge Gas arrived at the scene and were able to quickly cap the leak.

But he says there was a huge amount of natural gas that had escaped and that hampered efforts to rescue the lone male occupant trapped inside the vehicle.

There were no other injuries.

Leon says because of the gas leak, nearby businesses in the area were forced to shut down and people working and living close to the scene were evacuated.

He says a section of Highway 11 between Highway 93 and Line 3 was closed off for several hours, but it re-opened around 11 PM.

Oro-Medonte Fire Department and E-M-S were able to remove the victim -- a 55-year-old from Barrie -- from his vehicle.

He was first taken to Royal Victoria Hospital in Barrie then transferred to Sunnybrook hospital in Toronto where he is in serious condition.

Leon says when you consider the impact of the crash and the amount of natural gas he was exposed to, his injuries are likely to be serious.

Police are continuing to look into the cause of the crash.