Water Main Break Floods Streets And Homes In Yonkers

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A water main break early Monday caused a flash flood in Yonkers, sending water rushing into streets and homes.

As CBS2's Lou Young reported, residents were still dealing with the aftereffects several hours later.

The water came bursting out from under the pavement just before dawn at the intersection of Nepperhan Avenue and Executive Boulevard. A century-old pipe gave way, and a dozen homes were suddenly midstream as water rushed downhill to the nearby Saw Mill River.

"It was like about 4:30 when the policeman came knocking at my door," said flood victim Donna Bentag. "He said, 'Check your basement.'"

A steady flow poured into basements and low-lying garages. The contents of a nearby water tower flowed through the broken pipe under the street.

Resident Winifred Riker said she had about 4 feet of water in her basement, and everything was ruined.

"The oil burner's down there, sure; the washing machine, the dryer, the oil tank is down there, the dehumidifier is down there, there's a pool table down there," Riker said.

No one expected a flood to come down the hill. But a few residents had sandbags standing by because of their proximity to the river.

"Since Sandy, we've been ready," said flood victim Joe Evangelista. "During Sandy, we had 3 1/2 feet of water down here, so that was way worse. So we've been ready ever since then."

The city had to shut everything down just to try and locate the break, Young reported.

"The pipes are 100 years old, so the valves are a 100 years old," said Yonkers Department of Public Works Commissioner Thomas Maier. "So we're trying shut down all the valves. A lot of them are rusted up."

It appears the rough winter is partially to blame. Repeated hard freezes and thaws undermined the soil the old pipe was resting on, and old age took over from there.

The 12-inch main sits amid a tangle of sewage, gas and other water pipes. Fixing it requires extra care, and Con Edison workers were checking late Monday afternoon for possible gas leaks as the water main work continued.

Residents late Monday afternoon were just starting to assess the damage.

"Too much, too much -- and even trying to figure out, what do you do? Who to go to? Who helps you with all this," said flood victim Lee Anne Riker. "Who knows?"

Resident Vincent Nadlia's daughter-in-law had to flee from her basement apartment around 4 a.m.

"Everything is damaged," Nadlia said.

Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano said the city would do what it could to help those affected, but there are limits.

"The damage under the law is still the responsibility of the homeowner, but we'll be as helpful as we can possibly be," Spano said.

The northbound and southbound exists off the Saw Mill River Parkway to Executive Boulevard were closed during the flood, but the parkway remained open.

That means pumping out flooded basements where possible. The repair work could take days, but the water is at least back on – even if the pressure is low in some places.

Four schools and a nearby hospital had unusually low water pressure in the morning, but crews were able to route supplies past the break and restore full service.

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