Flood Gates Help Spare 2 San Anselmo Businesses From Major Damage Following Water Main Break
SAN ANSELMO (KCBS) - Business owners in San Anselmo were still cleaning up on Thursday following a water main break Wednesday afternoon on Tunstead Avenue.
Marin Municipal Water District crews were on site Thursday, after the 8-inch cast iron pipe burst open, sending a river of water just past and into businesses, including Haney Orthodontics.
"We were seeing patients in the afternoon and we looked out the window and saw water rushing by," said Natalie Leong.
Flood Gates Help Spare 2 San Anselmo Businesses From Major Damage Following Water Main Break
Parents were sent to the rear of the business to pick up their kids. Leong said they quickly worked to move all the office furniture.
"Lots of clean up. We were very lucky we didn't have any major damage, which is great," she said.
Jaime Ginsberg, who owns Marin Power Yoga, said he was just plain lucky.
"The example I would give you is one of the cars across the street, the water was about halfway up the wheel well, which was just enough to go, oh, this could get really bad quickly," he said.
After a major flood devastated San Anselmo in 2005, businesses put in flood gates, basically wood panels they put in in front of their doorways.
Those barriers proved to be vital for the businesses following the water main break, saving them from damage that could have been far worse.
