Southwest residents Detroit were forced from their houses and sent to hotels after a burst of pipeline, flood The districts before a gel-Flash which damaged nearly 400 houses and left frozen and inoperable snow-covered vehicles.
The crews had to use inflatable boats to cross the water to the knees while saving around 200 people and 12 pets. They have now searched the site where the main bursting of the transmission, and a replacement was ordered for a 3.7 -meter pipe section which is removed and should be on site in a day, according to the Great Lakes Water Authority. The water pipe will not return to service for at least two weeks.
The flood began on Monday around 2 a.m., when a main 54 -inch steel water (1.4 meters), built around 1930, suddenly broke. He sent water torrents to all directions of a constantly evolving crater. More than 90 people had to be helped from home.
Some were transported by firefighters through water led by size in rubber rafts. At least several have arrived safely in the bucket of a front charger construction vehicle.
Officials are still trying to determine what caused the huge pipe bursting. The temperatures were well below freezing at the time of the break and water and ice were as deep as 1.5 meters in certain areas.
“The exact cause is not known, but it is probably a combination of aging infrastructure and freezing temperatures”, ” City spokesman John Roach said in a declaration.
The City of Detroit will use funds from its water and sewer service and the water authority to pay hotel rooms and food for displaced residents. He will also repair and pay the uninsured damage to ovens and water heaters as well as to clean the basements, said the mayor of Detroit, Mike Duggan.
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“If you have no power, you have no heat, you have no water, you don’t have to stay at home,” said Duggan on Monday. “We will bring you to a good hotel room.”
“There are very few houses where he has no water,” said Duggan at a press conference at the police headquarters. “Most of the main pauses of water … are a small break on the main water line and you see an entire block drop. It did not happen here. It was a main transmission line. The lines, with the exception of three blocks today, were still intact. »»
“This problem will not restore water, it will be about the speed at which we can replace the ovens.”
The waters fell later Monday morning after retirement and water flow stopped. Tuesday, there were 72 houses without electricity, 190 flooded basements and 174 houses without heat.
Many snow -covered vehicles have been stuck in water to their wheel hits or engine caps until the water ends with drainage. The bottom of their tires remained locked in ice Wednesday and frozen on the sidewalk.
The crews should start to eliminate some of the houses that were not seriously affected on Thursday, according to Gary Brown, director of the City Water Department.
“We have a team of people accustomed to doing this kind of work and you will see us cross these houses quite quickly,” said Brown.
“The main thing is to recover the houses so that people can relive it,” he continued. “Take the ovens, the disinfected and clean hot water tanks so that people can come back. This is the phase in which we are now. »»
Wednesday, Southwestern Public Health An opinion of boiling water To all users of Southwold Water, “as a precaution due to a break from Watermain, which can lead to a siphoning of the back and the potential presence of bacteria in the water.”
“Dr. Ninh Tran, the health doctor, advises all users of the Southwold water supply to bring water to a boil for at least a minute before using it to drink, prepare preparations and the Infants juice, brush the teeth, wash raw foods or make ice cream, “reads the advice.
With most vehicles in the area frozen in place, residents are encouraged to use Uber for free rides to get to work and get essential elements such as grocery store, but rides must be ordered in the city by calling the emergency hotline, According to Detroit news. The emergency line can also be used if residents need a place to stay and if they need replaced ovens or water heater.
–With files from the Associated Press
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