SASKATOON – One week after a major water main break crippled the west side’s drinking water supply, some citizens are worried about further bursts this upcoming melting season.
Global News found out who pays and what can be done if a water main breaks near you.
When Nola Stein looked in her basement last Friday she was shocked to find her basement flooded due to a water main break at 8th Street and Victoria Avenue.
Water and mud filled the basement and destroyed most many belongings.
“We noticed the water was about four or five steps down from the main floor. So we had a bit of a panic and just began calling everybody because we’ve never seen this before and we didn’t know what to do,” said Stein.
The Victoria Avenue break occurred just after a primary break that left seven Saskatoon neighbourhoods under a precautionary drinking water advisory last weekend.
Restoring this break may have been to blame for the smaller break two blocks from Stein’s home, but the city couldn’t confirm that.
“Lowering it and taking it back up it is all interconnected and water does transmit energy very well and changes in the water system will assist in showing up in breaks in weaker parts of the system,” said Mike Gutek, infrastructure services general manager.
The most surprising development to homeowners in the flood zone was hearing from infrastructure services that the city is not liable for damages.
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“To me it seems like the city would be responsible because it’s a water main break and it’s not my water main that broke. It’s the city’s water main that broke,” said Stein.
Since 2007, the province has had immunity against any nuisance claim, which a water main breaks fall under.
“If the water main break’s it’s nothing that we can control and the water escapes on to some bodies property and does some damage. That would be an example of a nuisance claim and that’s where we would have protection from the province. If you look at the Cities Act you can see,” said city solicitor Patricia Warwick.
That act states it “is not liable in an action based on nuisance, or on any other tort that does not require a finding of intention or negligence, for any loss or damage arising, directly or indirectly, from any public works, including streets, or from the operation or non-operation of a public utility.”
In most cases when damage occurs from burst mains homeowners must use their own insurance to cover it.
“Yeah it’s sad to see it go but thankfully it’s only stuff and it’s not people or anything like that. We’re safe it’s just our belongings that are gone,” said Stein.
In the meantime, Stein is working with her insurance provider to assess damages.
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