San Antonio, Texas: Water Main Laid in 1887 Breaks and Shuts Broadway North of Downtown

A water main put in the ground in 1887 broke early Wednesday in San Antonio, and the San Antonio Water System closed a strip of Broadway north of downtown for most of the day while crews replaced the pipe.

The underground pipe gave out at about 4 a.m., KSAT reported. SAWS said a 24 inch cast iron main broke under the underpass, causing road damage that required a complete closure of Broadway. The morning closure ran between Roy Smith Street and Casa Blanca, and the closure later affected traffic on Broadway between Newell Avenue and Roy Smith Street. SAWS said no customers were without water service.

A pipe from 1887

"This pipe was put in the ground in 1887, so just one more reason and one example of why investing in our infrastructure is critical," said Lilliana Gonzalez, a communications specialist for SAWS. "Thankfully nobody is out of water currently. However the road is in bad shape and we need to replace the pipe."

Gonzalez said the Broadway break is a prime example of an ongoing aging infrastructure problem in the city. SAWS first estimated the repair work might run until late Wednesday night. In an emailed update later in the day, a spokeswoman moved the estimate up, saying the work was expected to be complete by 6 p.m.

What neighbors and riders found

Charlie Gutierrez, who lives in a nearby apartment, noticed the commotion as he set out on his regular morning walk with his dog. "This is pretty crazy," he said. "This was unexpected to see in the morning." He began working out how he would get around the closure to get to school, and said reaching a supermarket north of the work site would be a different challenge. Told the broken pipe dated to the 19th century, he said, "Wow. I'm surprised they lasted that long."

David Bitterman rolled through the work site on his bicycle. He said that stretch of Broadway is part of his usual route to the missions south of downtown. "Not unusual to encounter construction here in San Antonio, so I'm getting used to riding around it or through it," Bitterman said. He said this was the second water main break he had come across recently on his bike. A few weeks ago he found one on the North Side, near Blanco Road, and it turned him around.

The bigger repair job

Gonzalez pointed to a major pipe replacement project SAWS began last month on Hildebrand Avenue as proof of the work the city faces. A stretch of Hildebrand from McCullough Avenue to Shook Avenue remains closed while crews replace ancient pipes there. Beginning in January, SAWS will continue the Hildebrand work all the way to Devine Road, and another part of the multi million dollar project will replace pipes near Camden Street and Euclid Avenue, also beginning in January.

Gonzalez was not able to say whether a similar project is in store for Broadway. "In an ideal world, we should be able to maintain and replace those pipes, but that is very costly," she said.