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Street crews break Main Ave. water pipe

Deluge seeps into Northpoint Mall, results in outage
Crews working on sidewalks discuss the breakage of a water pipe in the 1200 block of Main Avenue on Thursday morning. The break left the west side of the block without water for a good portion of the day.

Street crews hit a water pipe Thursday morning while repairing sidewalks in the 1200 block of Main Avenue that caused flooding and a water outage that lasted for hours.

The pipe was hit at 9:38 a.m. outside The Durango Herald offices. Water immediately was shut off in the block, which includes the Northpoint Mall, Guido’s Favorite Foods, Durango Space, Buzztown and the Herald. Most of the block was without water until early afternoon, but the Herald’s office remained without water until about 5 p.m.

The water seeped into a storm drain and ended up in the basement of Northpoint Home Furnishings. Crews were unsure how the water seeped from the storm drain and into the basement of the mall, said Steve Salka, director of the utilities department for the city.

Water seeped from under one of the walls into the furniture store’s basement, and it caused a narrow pool of water to form and spread out. The water was about a half-inch deep and covered a 75-by-50-foot surface, said Travis Grigsby, an engineering technician with the city.

Store manager Catrena Quintal discovered the water about 12:30 p.m. and notified the sidewalk crews.

“We moved the furniture out of the way as quickly as we could,” she said.

Crews may need to remove a wall to check for structural damage, Quintal said. Several soaked rugs were set outside. Some furniture may be damaged, and the wooden legs of couches and chairs may be splitting, she said.

Quintal and Salka were unsure how much of the damage the city will cover.

Several businesses closed for the day because of the water break. Guido’s posted a sign on its door notifying customers it would open at 5 p.m. The Early Childhood Council of La Plata County also posted a sign on its door saying offices were closed for the day because of the break.

Contractors installing new conduits for fiber-optic and electric services were held up late last month after discovering an unexpected coal chute in the 900 block of Main Avenue.

The project between Seventh and 14th streets is expected to be completed by June.

jdahl@durangoherald.com



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