After a city contractor broke a gate valve on a water main, waters 30 inches deep surged through Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts, early Sept. 21.
According to the Boston Sewer and Water Commission, the city contractor broke a valve gate on a water main at 12:30 a.m., reported The Boston Herald. The Boston Fire Department responded to Myrtle and Hancock Streets, checking on the safety of residents by going door-to-door.
The water valve was shut off by about 2:30 a.m., according to the Boston Fire Department.
There were no evacuations and no injuries to report, according to Fire Chief James Greene, but the city has shut off water in the area while repairing the main and assessing the damages.
"They went unit to unit, checked to make sure that the occupants were safe," said Greene, reported NBCBoston. "There is some water in some of these units -- not as much as you would think, based on the amount of water coming down the road, but still enough to cause a problem."
Commuters should avoid Hancock Street, where repairs are underway, according to The Boston Herald.
Due to the force of the water, it dislodged bricks from the neighborhood’s sidewalks and sent muddy water flooding into basements. Some residents are without power, and residents are waiting for city workers to excavate the street sidewalk-to-sidewalk.
According to the local Faucher family, they told The Boston Herald that the contractor responsible for the work, D’Allessandro Corp., will compensate them for their damage.
Notably, the water rushed towards the odd-numbered side of Hancock Street.
Utility companies Eversource and National Grid were on scene by around 3:45 a.m., reported NBCBoston.