Posted on 09/26/2005 3:57:49 PM PDT by Cowman
Water Main Break Snarls Traffic No Major Flooding Reported
BOSTON -- A water main break in Boston's South End created traffic headaches Monday.
NewsCenter 5's Gail Huff reported that a city contractor accidentally hit a major water main at 9 a.m. Monday. Officials asked drivers to avoid the South Boston area of Washington Street from the Boston Herald Building to Massachusetts Avenue.
"It is like Niagara Falls out here," said one witness. "They was sitting there drilling and all of a sudden you heard a boom -- and water was just like Niagara Falls."
The city hired contractor New Hampshire Boring to drill for a new well.
"We have a network of a little over 600 wells right now that is growing around the city. What we do is monitor groundwater levels to make sure that the wood pilings that are under the buildings are kept covered in groundwater... otherwise foundations can crumble," said Elliott Laffer, of the Boston Groundwater Trust.
Laffer said the contractor did its homework by having Dig Safe mark the water lines, and that line was not marked. A spokesman for the city's water and sewer department disputed Laffer's claim.
"It's believed they were (marked) at this point. We feel they were marked properly. It is one of these things that it was an abandoned 6-inch lateral and, apparently, was hit," said Tom Bagley, of the Water and Sewer Commission.
There was no major flooding reported.
(The comment would be more interesting but the well was made by a boring company)
Booooo!
Where did you dig that comment up from?
NeverGore :^)
Oh, it just gushed out.
Call Miss Utility you dumb Bostonites.
Non-competitive bid award for more Kennedy relatives??
No, The Kennedy clan pretty much just sits around and plays cards.
Bridge, mostly
Yeah, but he was a pretty good guy(ser)
Next time they abandon a 6-inch lateral, they should consider disconnecting and de-pressurizing it. Just a thought...
Just for you:
http://www.dallasdrivers.org/boo.mp3
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.