A massive water main break flooded the streets of West Hollywood Thursday morning and opened a sinkhole near the Sunset Strip, leaving widespread damage in the neighborhood.
The water main break happened around 3 a.m. at Sunset Blvd. and Holloway Dr.
The trunk line was shut down just after 9:45 a.m.
At a morning press briefing, LADWP’s Chief Operating Officer Anselmo Collins said that the leak stemmed from a 1916 36-inch trunk line. He added that the people should still be able to have water.
“Now what we’re doing is shutting down some smaller valves,” he said. “Once everything is shut down, when it’s safe, we’ll go in, we’ll pump the water out of the hole that we have, we’ll make an assessment that will determine how long it will take us to make the repairs.”
Mayor Karen Bass urged people to avoid the area.
“Law enforcement and traffic officers will remain on the ground as crews continue to make progress on this incident,” she said. “DWP will also have personnel on the ground to assist with damage assessments and claims.”
Fire officials said the following roads were closed due to the water main break:
- Sunset Blvd. between Larrabee St. and Sherbourne St.
- Palm St. between Sunset Blvd. and Santa Monica Blvd.
- Santa Monica Blvd between Larrabee St. and Holloway St.
KNX News’ Pete Demetriou reported that fire trucks and search and rescue crews were moving from the top of Palm Ave, at Sunset Blvd., down to Santa Monica Blvd.
“We have engine companies and our USAR team that you've seen around here... going through, doing a primary search now,” L.A. County Fire Captain Aaron Katon said. “We have not received any calls for service or any reported medical emergencies, but we have to make sure that all the affected areas are clear.”
Demetriou also reported that at least six dozen pumper trucks are on the street, assigned to apartments running 4-inch diameter hoses into the flooded underground parking areas.
A resident named Kelly said her building was damaged in the flooding.
“The first garage isn't too terrible because we opened the lobby door, but our package room, our property manager's office, any carpeting on the first floor, the staircase down to the first floor is flooded, so we have to use a different stairwell,” she said. “The first floor's not in great shape, but, luckily, the cars in our first top garage aren't too bad, but we have one on Hancock, that's kind of submerged, and that one's in pretty rough shape.”
Repair work is expected to take several days. Many buildings in the West Hollywood Hills have been told to expect low-to-no water pressure.
Follow KNX News 1070 AM
