Watermain mayhem

CALGARY – It’s that time of year. Buried deep under the frozen earth there are city pipes ripe for an icy burst.

In the last week, Water Services has been called to five watermain breaks.

That brings the total number to forty since the beginning of December.

City workers say they’re not too worried about the freeze-thaw cycle happening right now because the pipes are insulated by three metres of dirt.

“Quick changes in temperature don’t really affect our system overall,” says Scott Eagleson, Manager of Construction Services with the City’s Water Services.

Instead, the prolonged cold is the source of most of the damage.

“As the winter extends and the ground frost reaches down below ground, it puts a lot of push and pull forces on that pipe and starts to strain the older parts of our system.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "As the winter extends and the ground frost reaches down below ground, it puts a lot of push and pull forces on that pipe and starts to strain the older parts of our system."

So far the amount of watermain breaks is on par with last year.