It’s not just that more water main breaks are occurring this winter – they’re taking longer to repair, as well.
“The frost is coming down, and it’s freezing a lot of services,” Tammer Gaber, Kitchener’s manager of operations, tells CTV News.
“It’s taking a long time for us to actually get down to the main.”
In many instances, crews have to get through six or seven feet of frost before they can get at the water infrastructure.
That was the case Thursday on Ottawa Street, where the road was shut at King Street for much of the day due to an early-morning break.
It was one of three breaks in the city on Thursday, and the 68th main break reported in Kitchener this year – actually down from the pace of 2014, when 78 had occurred by March 5.
Frozen pipes have been a bigger concern, with 250 cases reported to the city as of Thursday, slightly ahead of 2014’s pace.
“If we get an early thaw, then we should be OK – but if this continues into April, then that’s another story,” Gaver says.
Approximately $450,000 has been spent on fixing water mains across the city so far this year.
That number doesn’t take into account the final stage of repairs, which is conducted during the summer months.
