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Downtown water main breaks | Water back on for some residents, boil water notices distributed for others, Hawthorn St. offramp reopens

City staff has distributed boil water notices to nine addresses and is working directly with the customers to ensure they know how to make their water safe to drink.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif — Crews continue to cleanup Wednesday after two water main breaks flooded in areas near downtown and Balboa Park early Monday, injuring at least one person and forcing the closure of two roadways. An update to the road closures was reported overnight by Caltrans: NB I-5 at 163, NB SR-163 to NB I-5 and Hawthorn St offramp all lanes open.

The pipe ruptures - one at 11th Avenue and A Street and the other at SR-163 and Fourth Avenue - dumped water for hours triggering a SigAlert Monday morning for northbound Interstate 5 at Hawthorne Street and SR-163 at I-5 north.

The City of San Diego reported at 7 p.m. Monday that water service has been restored to many customers in downtown San Diego. This after the Public Utilities Department repaired a broken water main near 11th Avenue and A Street. The break on that 76-year-old, 16-inch diameter cast iron pipeline has been repaired. 

Complicating matters for crews: some of the valves near the second break were not closing properly.

"As a result, crews had to close valves quite a distance from the actual site," said San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria. "It took an awful long time to shut down the pipe and for the pipe itself to drain, adding to the complexity of the situation.

Once stability of the slope has been confirmed at the second water main break near Balboa Park off SR-163, crews can complete repairs on that 62-year-old, 24-inch diameter, reinforced concrete steel cylinder pipe. No customers are without water due to this main break, although customers in the surrounding area may be experiencing lower water pressure than normal, according to the City of San Diego, which adds that there is currently no time estimate for completion of repairs on this second break.  

 As water was restored, some residents were relieved. 

"It was kind of like being stranded," said East Village resident Dwyane Chew, talking about the lack of water since late Sunday evening. 

"You don't think about water until it goes away, and then all of a sudden you're like "Wow, we use a lot of water!" added resident Kelly Inman. 

Raymond Reynoso and his brother were filling up water bottles provided by the city and taking them back home when they got word their service had been restored.

"We were like 'Yes! Lets go  back home and take a shower! Lets use the water," he laughed.

UPDATE: Thursday, Nov. 25 the City of San Diego lifted the boil water advisory. City staff has distributed boil water notices to nine addresses and is working directly with the customers to ensure they know how to make their water safe to drink. State regulators will determine how long the boil water notice will be in effect based on daily testing. The specific addresses affected include:  

  • 545 Laurel St. 
  • 2302, 2350, 2395 and 2402 Sixth Ave.  
  • 1210 11th Ave. 
  • 1280 12th Ave. 
  • 1011 and 1110 A St. 

The causes of both breaks are under investigation. Caltrans will determine when freeway lanes impacted by the water main breaks are reopened, but drivers are encouraged to plan for alternative routes during the morning commute. 

WATCH: Chopper 8 is over NB I-5 at SR-163 where water main break shut down roads

Around 7 p.m. Sunday, an Uber driver reported that water burst through his windshield and passenger window, injuring his passenger, while he was driving off the ramp of State Route 163 around 7 p.m. Sunday, the California Highway Patrol reported. A water main break was confirmed shortly thereafter. The water from the break was shut off around 1 a.m., six hours after the initial report.

Around 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, the 11th Avenue water main break was reported, with water being shut off around 6:45 p.m. The downtown water main break caused a sinkhole and flooded at least one business in the East Village area, according to reports.

The city of San Diego posted water wagons for customers at 11th Avenue and B Street, as well as at Ash and 10th avenues.

No other information was released including the condition of the passenger of the Uber.

WATCH RELATED: Mayor Gloria: Too early to know how much water was lost in downtown water main breaks (Nov 22, 2021)

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