PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Water service is mostly back to normal in Kingsessing, but there is a lot more cleaning up to do at the site of a massive water main break that flooded the streets and some homes on Wednesday. Officials say repairs could take a while.
There are concrete barriers surrounding the intersection of 56th Street and Springfield Avenue. There is a huge crater in the middle of the street, where a century-old 48-inch water main broke, sending millions of gallons of water out into the neighborhood. Rocks, mud and debris still litter the ground.
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Hector Porter, who lives nearby, says he is luckily no damage was done to his home or car. He said the wall around the exterior of his front yard saved his property from the rushing water.
“Helicopter woke me up. Came out here, then I saw the mud, and the result is disaster,” Porter said. “Because of how the wall is built, no water went in.”
Neighbor Sharell and her niece Ariana say it was a shock to wake up to
“There was just, like, a river of water flowing down the street,” Sharell said. “Around 6:30, we were getting the kids ready to go to school. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any pressure in the water.”
“I tried to turn on the sink, but there was only a few drops that came out,” Ariana added.
Philadelphia Water Department spokesman Brian Rademaekers said service was slowly brought back online Wednesday.
“We have restored pressure and have been working to isolate the flow,” Rademaekers said, noting that pressure would rise as more water came back into the system.
Rademaekers says things will be back to normal eventually, but cleanup and repair crews will be busy for a while.
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“In terms of repairs to the intersection, that’s something we’ll work with the Streets Department and other utilities to get back to. Could be a matter of weeks or months to do the repairs once we’re finished,” Rademaekers said.
He says crews will replace the original cast iron pipe that burst with one made of ductile steel if needed.
Aging water infrastructure has been a big issue in Philadelphia for a while. The average age of water mains in the city is 76 years old.
The cause of the break is still under investigation.