Aging saltwater pipe suffers second rupture near Middle Terrace Road
On Tuesday morning some Avalon residents found themselves in a downpour, as a pipe had burst near the end of Middle Terrace Road, sending a geyser of water into the air and a flood down the hill.
The burst occurred around 8 a.m. according to Public Works Director Bob Greenlaw, who reported the incident to the Avalon City Council on Tuesday night. Greenlaw said that the pipe was a saltwater transmission pipe that ran to the Mt. Ada Resevoir.
Public works crews responded and immediately began setting up diverters for water that was flowing downhill. They wanted to prevent excessive damage from the water and mud flowing down the hill.
“Last time this happened we had significant mud flows that impacted the businesses and also the operation of Crescent and Pebbly Beach Road,” Greenlaw said.
The break in the pipe was about 20 feet below where a similar break had occurred approximately nine months ago. Greenlaw said the pipe is in need or being replaced and told the council that they would be bringing a report to the council soon, on what it would cost to replace the pipe in hopes that the money can be found to complete the project.
“it’s a 10-inch … iron pipe that is not in very good shape,” Greenlaw said.
The repair project required digging with hand tools and during the process a shovel struck a gas pipe, causing a gas leak and exacerbating the problem. Southern California Edison was called out to shut off the gas pipe. Crews still needed to repair the water pipe, but the shutoff valve did not hold, so crews had to perform a live repair, under heavy water pressure.
Greenlaw credited multiple agencies with helping Public Works get the situation under control and repaired. He said the help of SCE, Avalon Fire Department and other emergency service crews was instrumental in getting the repair finished by approximately 11:30 a.m.
“With all of that happening, it was pretty amazing, the efforts that we accomplished, that and it’s a good repair,” Greenlaw said.
