KCK City Hall offices closed Wednesday due to significant water damage
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, City Hall offices were closed Wednesday due to “extreme water damage.”
The closure impacted all services, such as the Municipal Court, other in-person services and programs operating from the building.
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According to a release from the county, the water damage severely impacted the ground floor of the City Hall building.
Water burst through a concrete wall on an unused side of the ground floor of the Unified Government building.
Officials blamed the broken pipe on ice with the area’s extended brutal cold.
And this wasn’t some standard pipe that people would find in their home. Instead, it was a fire water main, meaning it has a much higher water pressure than other pipes because it’s supposed to be used in fighting fires.
Although it caused a good amount of damage, the main reason the building closed Wednesday was because the Unified Government had to shut off water to the whole building.
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County Administrator David Johnston said the Unified Government’s logistics team got the alert around 2 a.m. Wednesday. They arrived to rushing water coming from the ground floor of building at the former police station, now unused.
“It took a while to turn the water off. One of the main reasons was because the main water box was buried under water, debris, gravel and rock salt,” Johnston said.
The basement also flooded. The upper floors are unaffected, apart from being cut off from water until county workers figure out a fix.
“This fire water main was embedded in the wall, and it’s at that place that the pipe burst and blew through the concrete,” Johnston said.
Other Unified Government buildings and services that are located outside of the Municipal/City Hall building worked remotely with limited services.
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The Unified Government announced Wednesday night that city hall will reopen for regular business hours on Thursday.
People with business at city hall can call the UG’s 311 number: 913-573-5311. The UG said it will also provide updates on its website and social media as they become available regarding the closure and impacts on services.
