Water Main Breaks in L.A.

Listen to the full audio story

Download the MP3

Water gushes out of a pump as a crew of workers drill into the pavement to fix the ruptured pipe on this block of Vista Street in West Hollywood.

Lawns are still muddy from the morning’s flood.

Long-time resident Susan Snyder says that people had to walk up onto people’s lawns to avoid the water. The street’s dry now that the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power has replaced the ruptured pipe, but Snyder is still worried.

"Well, the biggest concern is that there’s a big sinkhole in front of my neighbors house which extends halfway across the street," said Snyder.

Just a few miles away, the DWP’s District Superintendent, Breonia Lindsey, is working with a crew to fix the largest break at the Farmer’s Market at the Grove.

According to Lindsey, the water main breaks were caused by work being done on the Franklin Reservoir during an inspection. That led to an increase in pressure that ruptured the water main.

The Department of Water and Power is working on ways to prevent main breaks like this from happening again in the future.

"We’re working hard right now on an infrastructure replacement program, we’re replacing
35,000 feet this year," replied Lindsey. "It is an aging infrastructure. It’s a structure that we need to replace, and we’re working diligently to replace it."

Water will be in service and streets will open by 7 p.m. tonight.