With the soaring temperatures and lack of rain, NRH Public Works is seeing an increase in water main breaks. It’s not uncommon during the dry, hot summer months. As the ground gets parched, it contracts and shifts, which can put pressure on buried pipes causing them to break.
If you lose water pressure or see water coming out of the ground, this could be a sign of a water main break. Water main breaks should be reported to the Public Works Utility Division at 817-427-6440 during business hours or 817-281-1000 after business hours. Don’t assume your neighbor will make the call. We would rather receive multiple reports about a suspected problem than no calls at all.
If water is turned off in your neighborhood for an emergency repair, please be patient and know that our crews are working as quickly as they can to get it back in service. How long it takes to repair a main break can run from a few hours to a day or more. It depends on several factors, such as pipe size, pipe material and pipe depth. A typical repair takes about six hours.
Before beginning repairs, the utility must request the locations of other buried utilities, such as gas, telecommunications and electric. It can take two hours after the request is submitted to get these locations marked. Knowing the location of other buried utilities is essential to avoiding disruptions of other utilities or injuries to workers and others.
Once service is restored, you may notice your water appears cloudy. This is merely due to air being trapped in the water system while repairs were being made. After sitting for a few minutes, the cloudiness will dissipate as the air bubbles break apart.
Because water mains are located underground, crews often have to dig up a section of street when making emergency repairs. Once the water main is back in service, NRH Public Works will make a temporary repair to the street. A more permanent street repair will be completed several weeks later, after the ground has dried and the soil has settled.
Thank you to our NRH Public Works staff for your hard work in making these repairs!