As Thaw Begins, So Do Concerns Over Possible Pipes Bursting In North Texas Homes

FRISCO, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - As North Texas begins to thaw out from the frigid temperatures these past few days, there's another problem residents may soon face: their water pipes may burst if they froze.

On Friday, Paul Blake said he believes the cold weather triggered the leak in his main water line.

He said when he let the dog outside in the morning, he found water gushing from the front of his house toward the sidewalk.

"The pipe up near the house right after the pressure reducing valve had snapped looks like it probably had a crack in it from some damage previously, probably when they went putting the pool back wash valve in. More than likely, the freeze just finished that off."

Kevin Grant, Assistant Public Works Director for the city of Frisco said the city is expecting other residents to face similar situations.

It was a major problem after last year's severe winter storm. "We had 3,500 or more burst pipes, frozen pipes shut off in the city of Frisco that we responded to. We don't think we'll have that kind of volume this time."

That's because he said it hasn't been nearly as cold as last year and for nearly as long.

Blake said he shut-off his own water before calling the plumbers.

Grant said, "Everybody should know how to turn their water off in their homes."

To help residents learn how to shut off their water by themselves, the city of Frisco has a video on its website.

After another resident's hot water heater started leaking, a city of Frisco crew came to shut off his water.

Grant said his crews received 15 requests from residents to shut off their water Thursday and Friday, and a similar number of calls those days to investigate water leaks.

As for Paul Blake, he said once the plumber repaired one leak, he detected another, so they'll have to dig up his yard to fix it. "Plumbing is expensive."