Business & Tech

Schools Expected to Open After Water Main Break

Classes resume in southeast Baltimore County schools after 36-inch water man near Hammonds Ferry and Research Avenue ruptured.

Public schools in the Arbutus area are opening as usual Wednesday morning after the failure of a 36-inch water main in Riverview that disrupted water in three counties early on the morning of Jan. 3.

Celeste Amato, spokesperson for Baltimore City Public Works, said that the 36-inch line ruptured near a 54-inch transmission line that is one of the main water supply lines to Anne Arundel County.

Thr failure happened on the 2300-block of Research Avenue near Hammonds Ferry Road.

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Water pressure in the region fluctuated while public works crews opened and closed valves to re-route water around the leak, Amato said.

"Some people had low pressure problems, but [the leak] isn't affecting traffic or water service," she said. "People aren't experiencing outages."

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Low water pressure forced the closure of eight Baltimore County schools, affected St. Agnes Hospital, and left many residents in the area without tap water.

Several readers contacted Arbutus Patch and reported no water at home.

Water pressure problems appeared to have resolved by mid-day.

The outage closed Lansdowne High, Lansdowne Middle, Arbutus Middle, Arbutus Elementary, Relay Elementary, Riverview Elementary, Halethorpe Elementary, and Lansdowne Elementary. Violetville Elementary and Middle School in Baltimore City were also affected.

Amato said that the leak has been isolated, but not yet repaired. A contractor will be chosen for the repair project, she said.

A timetable for the repair was not available. "There's no way to predict how long it will take," Amato said.


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