Water main break causes flooding in north Edmonton

A north Edmonton street was transformed into a skating rink after a water main break at 2:30 on Thursday afternoon.

According to Epcor, a cast iron pipe burst, which is not uncommon when warm weather is followed by a quick drop in temperature. The ground shifts, but the pipes can’t adjust and don’t move when the ground does.

The watermain break happened near the intersection of 97th street and 127th avenue, which was flooded with water.

The water was waist deep near the rail overpass at Yellowhead trail, and frozen in some places.

Epcor, fire, police and transit officials wer all called to the scene to try to get the mess under control.

The City of Edmonton cleared catch basins to drain water off the roads. Once cleared, Epcor crews were out to clear slush and ice off the roads and to sand them down.

The initial water main break was contained by 5:00 on Thursday afternoon, but it’s unclear when the cleanup will be completed.