Another Day Without Water After Main Break
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Homes and businesses in a northeast Minneapolis neighborhood haven't had gas or water since early Saturday morning. And they may still have to wait at least another night.
A water main break forced the city to shut off utilities in order to fix the broken pipe.
City crews will continue to work through the night in order to fix the broken 24-inch water main that broke around 3 a.m. Saturday.
Since then, several homes and businesses have no water, no gas, no heat. Many are also wondering who is going to pay for their cleanup.
Carly Meyers says the carpet in her basement apartment is soaked after more than 5 feet of water invaded her space early Saturday morning.
"So that ruined the furnace, the water heater, kind of destroyed a lot of stuff," Meyers said.
Meyers says she thought she was dreaming when she heard the sound of running water in her bedroom.
"I was actually sleeping downstairs when it happened and I got woken at three o'clock in the morning with just water rushing out," Meyers said.
City officials say they have no idea what caused the water main to break. Right now they are focused on getting it fixed. Crews believe they will have the pipes fixed by Monday evening.
"The whole floor was covered with water," said Donald Quinn, whose dental office on Lowry Avenue is now adjacent to a huge hole.
Quinn said the water that came from the water main flowed out of the pipe like a river. Several inches of it ended up inside his workspace.
"Once they started digging the hole, it was still water kind of gushing. They used sub pumps to pump it all out. It was a lot of water in there and they had to get the water out of there before they could fix the main," said Quinn.
Once the water main is fixed, both Quinn and Meyers say their main concern is figuring out who is going to help them pay for their cleanup.
"I'm not sure if insurance is going to cover this because it was a city main that broke and the water came in, so it's not like our own water broke and flooded our building. So it might not be covered," Quinn said.
There were four to five buildings affected by the gas shut-off. The city is providing a place to stay for people who live there until the heat is back on.
