STEUBENVILLE - Water service was restored to Trinity Medical Center West this morning after a city repair crew replaced 11 feet of ruptured water pipe.
City Water Superintendent Bill Skinner said the age of the 12-inch water line and shifting ground soil caused by the drought-like conditions contributed to the line break.
Skinner said the water line was dedicated to Trinity Medical Center West.
"We were called late Sunday afternoon and responded immediately. We had to isolate the line and then replace 11 feet of deteriorated pipe," explained Skinner.
"The guys worked around the clock and completed the line replacement and repairs at approximately 7 a.m. today," said Skinner.
Steubenville fire Capt. Chris Blackburn said his department was notified by hospital officials of the water break at approximately 6 p.m. Sunday.
"It was like a raging river of water coming down Johnson Road when we arrived on the scene. An 8-by-8-foot hole had been created near the street between the arena parking lot and Catholic Central High School. It initially looked like a water volcano. We immediately blocked traffic from that street and then started helping nearby homeowners who had water coming into their basements. We used squeegees to help some residents clear water from their basements. And we were able to use sandbags to block water from entering other homes," said Blackburn.
"We also worked to clear debris that had collected at storm sewer grates so the water could be channeled to those drains. It was a bad situation but it could have been a lot worse," added Blackburn.
