Replacement pipe has arrived at the scene of a gas line rupture in South Australia, as Whyalla and Port Pirie continue to struggle on without gas supplies.

Epic Energy says work to excavate the ruptured pipe was completed on Tuesday, and it expects to provide an update on when gas supplies will be restored on Wednesday.

Its initial assessment was for the gas to start flowing again either late on Friday or early on Saturday.

Sunday’s rupture has left 5500 households and businesses in Port Pirie and 4000 in Whyalla without gas for most of this week.

Hospitals and nursing homes have switched to bottled supplies, while the councils organised free barbecues on Tuesday night to provide a hot meal for those without cooking facilities.

The councils also arranged for some community facilities, including swimming pools and caravan parks to provide hot showers.

The economic impact of the disruption to Whyalla and Port Pirie is expected to run into millions of dollars.

An exclusion zone remains established around the site of the rupture, with police maintaining road blocks.

The cause of the rupture is still to be determined but was possibly the result of a 1.5 magnitude earthquake on April 11.

– AAP