Major water main repair will be a big job

CAMBRIDGE — It’s going to be a while before the large water main running along Cambridge’s Concession Street bridge is repaired.

More than a week ago, massive slabs of ice carrying debris along the fast-moving river below ripped off 25 feet (about 7.5 metres) of the water main, leaving Galt and a portion of Preston without water until it could be rerouted a few hours later. The surge in the river’s flow occurred when an ice jam upstream was broken down by rain and warmer temperatures.

Now, the Region of Waterloo, which owns the main, is working through the repair process.

“It’s one of the transmission mains, so it’s one of the bigger mains that moves water from one part of the city to the other,” said Olga Vrentzos, manager of water operations and maintenance for the region. The region owns the large transmission mains, which carry water from the plant and to the city networks.

“We are reviewing the damage to the water main and will need to conduct an engineering evaluation before proceeding with a repair (or) replacement.”

The cost and schedule for repair won’t be known until the assessment is completed, but the system functions just fine without it, assures Vrentzos.

“There is enough redundancy in the system to allow this main to be temporarily out of service without negatively impacting the system,” she said.

Cambridge had estimated it lost about $200,000 worth of water at the time of the water main break.