Water main break in downtown Belleville forces partial closure of Illinois 159

A water main that burst beneath Illinois 159 in downtown Belleville Tuesday evening sent a river of muddy water streaming south along the highway for over three hours before the break was capped.

The main, located underground between the downtown YMCA and the new Bank of Belleville building, burst around 5 p.m. Road workers partially closed the street to allow a crew from Illinois American Water room to break open a hole in the road to give workers access to the main to cap the break.

Workers wading in the hole full of muddy water had the leak stopped by 8:30 p.m. The northbound lane of Illinois Street remained closed after crews left the scene. Northbound drivers were forced to use the turning lane of the street to bypass the hole in the road. The southbound lane was not closed and traffic in that direction won’t be affected.

According to a Belleville Police Department dispatcher, no boil order had been issued as of 7:25 p.m. The water main break forced the closure at 7 p.m. of the YMCA, which is normally open until 10 p.m. An employee said the closure was necessary because there was no water pressure in any of the sinks, showers, toilets or drinking fountains in the building.

Shortly after the main broke and before work crews arrived to begin repairs, water was seen gushing up off the east side of the street from a landscaped area on YMCA grounds and through cracks in the middle of the street. Water also gushed up near the curb on the west side of the street near where construction of the Bank of Belleville’s new headquarters has been ongoing. That runoff eroded loose soil and sand from between the curb and sidewalk, sending it west along Harrison Street.

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This story was originally published July 21, 2015 at 8:30 PM with the headline "Water main break in downtown Belleville forces partial closure of Illinois 159."