Residents living near West Flaming Gorge Way found themselves without water for a few hours Monday as city crews worked to repair a broken water main.
According to Public Works Director Mark Westenskow, the breakage was reported at about 7:30 a.m., Monday morning. A resident had called the public works department, reporting an section of the street with an unusual amount of moisture on it.
Westenskow said at this time of year, seeing streets with unexplained and liquid water on the surface can be a telltale sign of a breakage, as well as the more common sight of water bubbling up from seams in the street.
A city crew was dispatched to repair the breakage, having the site cleaned up by mid day. Work was completed by about 4 p.m.
Westenskow said the water lines are 4 and 6-inch cast iron pipes that are several decades old. Because of how antiquated the lines are, breaks are becoming more common.
“We’ve had several (breaks) in the downtown area,” Westenskow said.
With the breakage Monday, Westenskow said the line was located about three and a half feet from the surface, whereas modern waterlines are buried at a depth of about 6 feet. At that depth, Westenskow said ground frost could have an impact on the line. He also said the section could have been leaking for a while and just recently came to the surface.
Westenskow said the city has had some discussions with the Wyoming Department of Transportation regarding issues needing to be addressed on the street.
Flaming Gorge Way, as well as Uinta Drive, are considered portions of state highways and fall within WYDOT’s jurisdiction.
He said WYDOT is in a pavement preservation mode and not willing to take on complete pavement reconstruction projects due to budgetary constraints.
Stephanie Harsha, the public involvement specialist with WYDOT’s District 3 office in Rock Springs, said WYDOT’s focus is on ensuring current road surfaces last as long as possible.
While WYDOT’s State Transportation Improvement Plan lists projects over the course of the next several years, Harsha said WYDOT could expedite a critical project if needed.
“If it’s a priority project where the road was falling apart, we would expedite it as fast as possible,” Harsha said.
Westenskow said he submitted a request to WYDOT for a comprehensive study of Flaming Gorge Way, but has yet to receive a response.
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