Weekend water main break not related to big one in June: Calgary official

A Calgary official says a water main break has closed a road and left some homes and businesses dry, but says it is not related to a feeder main rupture earlier this year in the same area of the city that resulted in months of water restrictions.

Ryan Kidd, the city’s deputy director of water services, says the recent break happened in a smaller, 250-millimetre cast-iron distribution line that serves the immediate area, which is near Bowness Road and 51st Street North West.

Kidd says water began bubbling up at street level on Sunday night and crews immediately shut down the line for repairs, adding the city typically gets water restored for affected customers within 48 hours.

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A massive water main supplying 60 per cent of the drinking water for Calgary ruptured June 5, and Calgarians were urged to cut their indoor water use by 25 per cent amid a state of local emergency.

2:02 No more water restrictions in Calgary

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Crews later found more breaks in the feeder main that needed repairs, and it wasn’t until late last month that restrictions on outdoor watering with potable water were finally lifted.

Kidd says the water main that broke on the weekend was installed in 1959, and he says Calgary usually has over 200 such breaks in a typical year.

“With a cast-iron main, they can develop pinhole leaks after a while. And depending on what happened, the corrosion can cause water main breaks over periods of time,” Kidd said.

The city said last month that it expected to receive a forensic report from consultants on what caused the problems with the feeder main that ruptured in June by the end of October, and details on its findings will be shared when they are available.