September 19, 2012

200,000 gallons of water spilled in North Granville

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B y Bill Toscano

Town crews responded quickly to a water main break early on the morning on Sept. 13, but highway superintendent John Tanner said he estimates 200,000 gallons were lost.

It was the second major leak at that site in seven years. Tanner said the leak started when a gasket between two pipes slipped. “When that happens, the water pushes out, and it peeled back a three-inch piece the size of a hand.”

“When I got there, there was water from one side of the road to the other,” Tanner said of the 3:15 a.m. incident on Main Street in North Granville. “We got it shut down quickly, and we had it fixed before noon.” Tanner said eight houses in the immediate area will have to boil water for the next three or so days.

“We put notes on all the doors to let people know,” he said.

While town Supervisor Matt Hicks was unhappy about the spill, he was heartened that the county’s Hyper-Reach system, also known as Reverse 911, worked much more effectively this time than it had the first time the town used it for a water issue.

“It went much better. We got to a lot more people,” he said. “By 6 a.m., we had gotten to everyone.”

While only a few houses were directly affected, Tanner sent a message to the entire water district warning of the possibility of no water, low pressure or an odd color. Hicks said some homes could not be reached and added that information on the Hyper-Reach system will be included in the water bills of those who could not be reached.

Tanner said the house nearest the leak suffered a flooded basement, which also happened the last time the pipe leaked. He said the owners reported that by noon there was very little water remaining. Seven years ago, they had to replace their furnace because of the flooding, but this time the furnace was fine.