SEQUIM – A broken water main in Sequim on Maple Street between 6th and 7th Avenues had crews working until midnight Wednesday to get the water turned back on. The result is that Maple Street behind JC Penney Plaza will be closed to through traffic until the street can be repaired.
The 8-inch plastic pipe burst under the street around 5:00pm. We asked Matt Klontz at Public Works if it was an old pipe that would need to be replaced.
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“The water main material was a plastic pipe material which is considered sort of modern technology and sufficient for water mains. We don’t envision having to replace the water main. It is unusual that are broke but we believe that was a result of bedding material and a large rock kind of pressing against the water main in this location.”
Despite a tremendous amount of water flowing from the broken pipe, Klontz says no homes or businesses were damaged, although one car drove into a sinkhole before crews arrived. The driver was not injured. As for the timetable for getting the street fixed:
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“In order to restore the street, the city will likely have to repair the eastbound lane. It’ll probably be a full-width repair and it could be anywhere from 200 to 300 feet of road that’s repaired. The good news is, the city is doing the annual paving project later this year this fall. So there’s time to have that work rolled into the city-wide Pavement Preservation Project, which is slated for October/November timeframe.”
City of Sequim photos showing damage and repairs.