Water main break causes three-story geyser, street closure in Alton
A three-story geyser shot out from a street in Alton due to a water main break early Wednesday morning.
The break occurred at Broadway and Fourth Street at about 4:30 a.m. State Street remained closed through Wednesday morning from River Road to Fourth Street as crews worked on the break.
Karen Cotton, spokeswoman for Illinois American Water, said the break was probably caused by the frigid temperatures.
“It’s not uncommon to see water main breaks when temperatures drop,” she said. “Crews did a great job isolating it and getting it shut down in such frigid temperatures within hours.”
Breaking- large water main break in downtown Alton, near 4th street. Of course it's freezing. Be careful if you're out that way! We have latest right now on #N4TM pic.twitter.com/QeL1TDvgdh
— Cory Stark (@CoryStarkKMOV) December 27, 2017
Cotton said fewer than 20 customers were affected by the break, and the roadway was expected open again by Wednesday afternoon.
“I also want to recognize the city of Alton,” she added. “They were on site quickly, helping with traffic control and salting the roadways.
State Street is closed from 4th Street to Broadway due to a water main break. It is unknown how long it will be closed, but Public Works and Illinois American Water are working hard to repair the problem and will reopen roads as soon as possible.
— Alton Police Dept (@AltonILPolice) December 27, 2017
Water main break in Alton https://t.co/9WkBSDWNyf pic.twitter.com/lkwgowwlYo
— KSDK News (@ksdknews) December 27, 2017
This story was originally published December 27, 2017 at 9:07 AM with the headline "Water main break causes three-story geyser, street closure in Alton."