Chris Landry [email protected]
St. Martinville – Only a few days after fixing a leak in an 8-inch water line that was losing nearly 400,000 gallons of water daily, the City of St. Martinville brought in a contractor to repair a broken 16inch main water line off of Aubrey Ozenne Road that led to the city’s water tower draining rapidly and a loss of water pressure citywide this week.
A citywide boil water advisory was issued as a result on Sunday morning, with the city ending the boil advisory on Monday after repairs were completed, city Facebook posts stated.
St. Martin Parish Government supplied the city with water during the repairs, and the city acknowledged that with thanks on its Facebook page. Residents in the area between Aubrey Ozenne Road and Terrace Highway, and from Terrace Highway to Capritto Road, remained without water until the repair was completed.
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“Due to the location and severity of the leak — deep in a canal and difficult to access — the City has hired a professional contractor who will have a crew on-site first thing in the morning to begin repairs. Unfortunately, this is beyond the capabilities of our current staff and equipment,” a city Facebook post read.
The previous leak, located behind St. Martinville Senior High and the St. Martin STEAM Academy, was located and fixed on Thursday. (See related story, this issue.)
St. Martinville Mayor Jason Willis said in a Facebook post on Monday that the city had contractors on-site working alongside its Public Works Department to repair the 16-inch water line that ruptured around 2 a.m. on Sunday morning, draining the city water tower within 45 minutes of the low-pressure alarm going off.
“This line, located 20 feet deep off of Aubrey Ozenne Road, is the main water line coming from our city’s water well,” Willis said on Facebook on Monday. “Crews began work at 6 a.m. this morning, and we are optimistic that the repair will be completed by nightfall to restore full water service to our community.
“While this type of emergency is beyond our control, please know we are doing everything in our power to get this resolved quickly and safely.”
Willis extended “a sincere thank you to St. Martin Parish for providing supplemental water to help service over 90% of our customers during this emergency. We are truly grateful for their support.”
By Monday evening, the mayor reported that the main water line had been successfully repaired and the city had switched back to its water system.
“One hundred percent of our customers are now receiving water from our city well,” Willis posted. “We know this situation has been a major inconvenience for some residents, and we sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding. Our teams have been working nonstop from morning until now to make this repair happen as quickly and safely as possible.
“We thank you all for your support and also extend a continued thank you to St. Martin Parish for their assistance during this time.”
