HOUSTON – A day after a water main broke in northwest Houston Thursday morning, flooding parts of the streets, restaurant and business owners are hoping to reopen their doors after a temporary setback.
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A spokesperson for Houston Public Works first told KPRC 2′s T.J. Parker over the phone Thursday morning a contractor working for an electric company hit a water line. For that reason, many utility lines were also seen on the ground.
Crews were seen making repairs in the Washington Avenue Corridor starting around 4 a.m. on the corner of Yale and Center Street. Video shows the flood waters are quite deep but it’s also unclear how long the water had been flooding.
We’re also told several cars and businesses were flooded as a result and the main gushed thousands of gallons of water until about 5 p.m. Thursday.
Several restaurants in the area, whose owners spoke to KPRC 2, including our Deven Clarke, who arrived to find crews still working Thursday evening, said they were forced to close temporarily.
“With our patio that has brought in mud, trash and whatnot and when we pulled up this morning we couldn’t even get in the business because there was ankle deep water standing everywhere,” said Alex Moghaddam, owner of La Vita Coffee and Burger Vibe.
The business owner also noted he is certain the crew responsible for the break was contracted through a company that CenterPoint Energy contracted. CenterPoint shared the following statement with KPRC 2:
“The safety of our workers, customers and community is CenterPoint Energy’s top priority. In the process of replacing electric utility poles to strengthen resiliency in the area near 76 Yale St., a water main break was discovered. Crews immediately alerted the City of Houston and have remained onsite as repairs are made. The cause of the leak is still being determined.”
Houston Public Works also assured water customers their bills will not be affected and there will not be a boil water notice.
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