Residents Allowed Back Home After San Francisco Water Main Break, Sinkhole
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Fourteen households displaced by Tuesday's water main break in San Francisco's Visitacion Valley neighborhood were being allowed to go home Wednesday, a spokeswoman for the city's Public Utilities Commission said.
The residents were displaced after a 42-inch main broke on Sunnydale Avenue between Cora Street and Tomaso Court about 11:10 a.m. Tuesday.
The break triggered the rupture of a second, smaller pipe and sent thousands of gallons of water into several nearby homes, as well as a church and school, SFPUC spokeswoman Betsy Rhodes said.
The rupture left a gaping hole several feet deep on Sunnydale Avenue.
The cause of the rupture remains under investigation. SFPUC officials today said it was unrelated to a recent sewer construction project in another part of the neighborhood.
The break sent water into the Our Lady of the Visitacion K-8 school. Multiple classrooms were damaged, as well as the gymnasium and the school's administrative offices, principal Maxie O'Rourke said.
O'Rourke initially said that the school could be closed until Sept. 10, but a message on the school's website later in the day said classes are now expected to resume on Tuesday.
Rhodes said pipeline and street repairs were under way at the site this morning and that city officials are working with residents to determine the total damage caused by the flooding.
Anyone whose property was damaged should contact the city attorney's claims division at (415) 554-3900.
There was no timeline yet for when the roadway will be repaired, Rhodes said.
