Pipe break leaves homes, businesses without water on South End to Belmont

LACONIA — Staff of the city Water Department were out all night and into much of the day Wednesday, tending to a water main break on Court Street that affected residents all the way into Belmont.

Water Superintendent Ben Crawford said they expected repairs to be completed before the end of the day. Mayor Mike Bordes confirmed things were back to normal by Wednesday evening. "The water main has been fixed. The water is turned back on," Bordes said.

Crawford said around midnight Wednesday, the department's technology let him know tank levels started to drop. He and other workers immediately went out to check on the issue, but it took several hours for the break to be visible.

“It started to surface around 4 a.m., and we’ve been out here digging since 6,” Crawford said, while surveying the scene with four city employees Wednesday morning.

City Manager Kirk Beattie said water department staff needed to call Liberty Utilities, since the break was near natural gas lines, and this delayed digging.

Crawford said the issue started with a broken pipe on Bay Street, which is actually under Court Street. The water main runs up the left side of the road toward Belmont. While they were cleaning off the 6-inch line that snapped, a repair from a previous break was found, and crews found it was also leaking, at the connection of the Court Street waterway.

Given the age, Crawford said it wasn’t repairable, so they cut the 12-inch main on Court Street. Crews then cut out, and replaced, about 12 feet of pipe. He attributed the break to the age of the pipe, and the cold weather.

“There is no glaring cause,” Crawford said. “I attribute it to the same older pipe, and the frost this year has been rough. The colder winters are tough on pipes.”

The city posted at 8:30 a.m. on its website that crews were working to repair the break, and there was no timetable for restoration. The work was expected to take several hours.

“I know that it goes all the way into Belmont down Route 3, and its covering a large section of the South End, off Court Street,” Beattie said. “It definitely affects quite a few businesses and residents.”

At about 9:30 a.m., a worker wearing a hardhat was standing in a hole about 20 feet wide and about 6 feet deep, made by an excavator near the intersection of Court and Pearl streets. Sopping piles of dirt were being cleared away by the excavator, as workers tried to identify the cause and repair the break. The water main was laid in 1964, according to Crawford, and Beattie said it was not scheduled for repair.

While the break was directly in front of Belknap House, city staff said the break is unrelated to planned sewer line repairs there, pending a grant approval.

Crawford said there is a hydrant at the end of the Belmont line, so everyone from Pearl to the area of Shooter’s Tavern on city or Belmont water was affected.

“That is a lot,” Crawford said. “And you have to remember, there are the six or eight side streets off Court Street.”

While Shooter’s Tavern reported they were open and not affected by the water main break on Wednesday, that wasn’t the case for some Route 3 businesses in Belmont.

“We can’t let anybody work out, so we have been closed all day,” said Planet Fitness team member Logan Canterbury on Wednesday.

Crawford said St. Francis Rehabilitation and Nursing Center on Court Street was notified immediately, the first call he made after contacting Dig Safe.

The fire department responded to the senior living home, which has about 50 residents. Fire Chief Tim Joubert said they made sure those who rely on the sprinkler systems have plans in place. A spokesperson for St. Francis confirmed the home was without water throughout the day, and used bottled water in the meantime.

Belmont Fire posted on social media at about 7 a.m. Wednesday that the water main break was affecting the water supply on Route 3. The post stated Belmont public works staff were assisting crews to get water back to residents as soon as possible, and expected water service to return by the end of the day.

The Laconia Fire Department also posted about the situation on social media, asking drivers to allow for extra travel time, as it would impact travel most of the day. Laconia Police had cruisers blocking the section of Court affected, at the intersections of both Pearl and Bay.

Joubert said his department had fielded some calls about the break Wednesday, but it was mostly being handled by the water department. He commended them on their work to restore water to those affected.

“They are still out there working hard, but I’m confident they’ll have it buttoned up by the end of the day,” Joubert said.

Crawford said at 3 p.m. Wednesday, the underground work was completed, and water was expected to be restored shortly. He said the final step was flushing the main through hydrants in both Laconia and Belmont.

Crawford said he'd be meeting with the Department of Public Works and paving crews onsite to discuss paving the area. The roadway will be passable for traffic, despite it being a gravel, bumpy surface.

The repair was a collaboration between multiple city and town departments, with some working upwards of 15 hours on the fix.

“It has been a team effort to get this buttoned up and have the road back together,” Crawford said.