Hydrant fix triggers water main break, outlet closures
Valve failure faulted in rupture that closed Whole Foods, others.
WEST PALM BEACH — A routine effort to swap out a non-functioning fire hydrant Thursday led to a major water main break on Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard that forced closings of Palm Beach Outlets’ food court, Whole Food Market and several restaurants.
City water workers conducting a check of the hydrant near the Best Buy electronics store, across the street from the mall, found it wasn’t working. When they went to shut a valve at 1:15 p.m. to isolate the hydrant from the 16-inchwide main and replace it, the isolation valve broke, sending water under high pressure shooting out of the break.
The city called in four crews with backhoes and other equipment to tame the break, which had spewed water and sand all over the Best Buy lot, much of which was closed for repairs while the store stayed open. Service was restored at 4:15 p.m., Assistant Cit y Administrator Scott Kelly said Friday.
Traffic on Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard was not affected, and the mall shops did not close. The food court did. Whole Foods remained closed for the rest of the day.
Earlier reports that the break was caused by a truck hitting a tree were incorrect, Kelly said. During repairs, a city truck was used to remove a palm tree near the site for workers’ safety, as water was undermining the roots, he said.
A spokeswoman for the mall said water service was interrupted from about 1:45 to 5:30 p.m. In Have a West Palm Beach news tip? Contact Staff Writer Tony Doris at tdoris@pbpost.com or 561-820-4703.
addition to the food court and Whole Foods, restaurants Pei Wei, Starbucks, BJ’s Brewhouse, Red Robin, TooJay’s and Cucina Pizza closed during that period. All reopened at normal hours Friday morning.
According to Kelly, workers replacing a hydrant close the attached isolation valve to enable work to be done without affecting a water main. In this case the valve failed.
In addition to rushing a dozen men to the scene with shovels and backhoes, the city used a streetsweeper truck to clear sand out of the parking lot and from Best TALLAHASSEE — Florida legislative leaders put the finishing touches Friday on a package of budget-related bills, as the new spending plan weighing in at roughly $83 billion was released to lawmakers and the public.
The network of interlocking deal s c a me t oo l a t e t o a l l ow the legislative session to end as scheduled on Friday. Because of a 72-hour “cooling off ” period required by the state Constitution, the House and Senate will not be able to vote to approve the spending measure before 2:43 p.m. Monday.
“It’s just been a very long journey,” House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, said Friday afternoon at a final negotiation session with Senate President Joe Negron, R-Stuart.
The t wo s i des had a l re a dy agreed on the spending plan in a meeting Thursday, but needed Friday to conclude work on a series of bills tied to the budget.
The budget, which provides funding for state functions for the year that will begin July 1, would provide a modest increase for the main formula for school funding, give state employees their first raise since 2013 and slash Medicaid payments to hospitals by $521 million. Some of those health care cuts could later be restored by spending from a federal program still being negotiated between Gov. Rick Scott and the Trump administration.
The budget will also, notably, not include economic-development incentive money sought by Scott and will slash tourism-marketing funds. The governor continued a tour of the state Friday aimed at pressuring lawmakers to cave on the issues.
Despite the governor’s broadsides, and some criticism from outside groups, legislative leaders said they were pleased with the final plan.
“I think that the budget is a good budget that we can be proud of, that has a commitment to the