Massive Water Main Break Floods North Philadelphia Streets
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - A massive water main break at Marshall and Thompson Streets caused all kinds of headaches in North Philadelphia early Tuesday morning.
It was quite a surprise for residents as they opened the door to head out to work.
"You open the door, there's a river out here. It's way better than what it was, but there was water all down the street, it was like the Thompson Street River," one resident said.
The 36-inch main broke around 7:30 a.m., sending the rivers of water downhill north and east of the break. Cars parked along the street were submerged past their bumper. Some neighbors were seen moving their cars before the water became too high.
Once the main was shut down, clean-up began, piles of mud lined the streets, and the intersection of Marshall and Thompson had completely collapsed.
Officials from the Water Department were on hand to talk to residents whose homes sustained damage from the break.
The exact cause of the break remains under investigation. However, early speculation is that the cold weather may have played a role.
"This is our heaviest break time and we're gonna try to do our best to get this one fixed quickly as possible," John DiGiulio, of the Water Department, said.
In all, Water Department said approximately eight million gallons of water leaked out during the break.
Reported By Jim Melwert, KYW Newsradio; Dray Clark, CBS 3
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