Franklin Street floods in Watertown from burst water main

May 22—WATERTOWN — A water main break on Franklin Street Wednesday afternoon caused sections of the busy residential street to flood.

The city water and public works departments worked several hours to fix the break, but a crew was still on the scene shortly before 7 p.m.

The break occurred at about 1 p.m.

Initially, a stream of water flowed down Franklin Street. But water department employees isolated the break between East Avenue and Broadway after shutting off several valves in the area, city engineer Tom Compo said.

Dozens of residents — around the area of Franklin Street and Thompson Boulevard — were without water soon after the break.

Former City Councilman Patrick J. Hickey, who lives on Pawling Street, said dozens of residents were still without water at 9 p.m.

"It would be nice if I had water," he said, adding that he would be willing to share 500 gallons of nonpotable water from his hot tub with his neighbors.

The city fire department had to pump out a basement at 1013 Franklin St., according to fire dispatch.

The basement ended up with 3 feet of water, causing damage to the water heater and furnace.

Late Wednesday afternoon, Mayor Sarah V.C. Pierce and council members, accompanied by City Manager Eric F. Wagenaar, went to take a look at the situation.

In a text message to council members, Wagenaar said he hoped that the break would be repaired soon.

Early Wednesday afternoon, Franklin Street was closed from Winslow Street to the west to East Avenue to the east, but by late afternoon the closure was confined to the two blocks between South Hamilton Street and East Avenue.

In recent years, the city has had its share of water main breaks and other water issues.

Hickey wondered whether Wednesday's break has anything to do with work that's underway to fix a leak in a pipe that goes into the 5-million-gallon reservoir in Thompson Park, just blocks from where the pipe broke on Wednesday.

The leak from the water reservoir has gone on for decades. The city is paying the contractor $325,000 to correct that problem.

Last fall, a major water main break in front of the Water Treatment Plant on Huntington Street caused an emergency when much of the city was left without water for four days.

City officials thanked residents for their patience and cooperation while the work on the burst water man is completed.

The city put out these instructions to residents affected by the break:

— If you experience discolored water following the repair to the water main, run all cold water faucets for two to three minutes, shut the water off, allow the water to settle for about 15 minutes, and run the water again for two to three minutes.

— If the water does not run clear, repeat this process. Do not run the hot water faucets until the cold water runs clear.

— If the water does not become clear after repeating this process multiple times, call 315-785-7757.