Two water mains broke at 7 a.m. yesterday, leaving most university buildings, much of uptown Athens and the Longview Heights area without water.
City workers fixed the Stewart Street break by 4 p.m. after eight and a half hours of repairs. The other main break occurred southeast of Ohio University on Curtis Street.
We have an aging infrastructure and
as these pipes age these things happen said Sewer Supervisor Scott Lambert. The majority of the pipes in Athens, including the Stewart Street pipe, are approximately 80 years old, said Terry Gilkey, a water maintenance worker. He estimates that some might be even older.
Water main breaks usually take a few hours to fix, but the Stewart Street break was much more complex, Lambert said. His crew cut out a 9-foot section of the pipe and replaced it with a new one because workers could not close the 4-foot long crack.
OU and the city then had access to water, but a boil order will be in effect until this afternoon, Lambert said.Bottled water will be available in the lobbies of all open dining halls until early this afternoon, according to an OU news release.
Residents of East Green, South Green and Bromley Hall awoke yesterday morning without operating showers and toilets.
My roommate and I had to walk to Baker just to go to the bathroom
sophomore Jon Machles said, adding that the toilets throughout Bromley Hall were a mess.
A Court Street Diner employee was the first person to call the city about the break, Gilkey said. The employee, who was opening the restaurant, realized there was no water pressure at about 7 a.m.
Court Street Diner employees look forward to big weekends like Moms weekend, Julianne Heckler said, but lost a lot of business because they had to open two and half hours later than usual. Employee Jakob Siegel estimated that they lost between $600 and $800 yesterday morning.
On Curtis Street, city workers put a 20-inch clamp on the baseball-sized hole in the water main pipe last night, which Gilkey expected would give water access to the surrounding areas around midnight. The break occurred beneath a resident's newly paved driveway, but city workers will fix any damage, Gilkey said.
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Caitlin McGlade
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An Athens city worker labors to repair the 80-year-old broken water line on Stewart Street. There was a second water main break on Curtis Street beneath a resident's freshly paved driveway.
