TWW pipe malfunction creates a pond in Hamilton

HAMILTON >> A Trenton Water Works pipe that has been leaking since Oct. 1 will be repaired or replaced over the weekend if weather permits, city officials said regarding the issue which has impacted Hamilton residents on Merham Court.

The continuous water leak has created something of a shallow pond on Merham Court, a residential dead-end street near Quakerbridge Road.

“Concerning the leaking ‘flusher assembly’ at the end of a six-inch water main at Merham Court in Hamilton,” TWW spokesman Michael Walker said Friday in an email, “Trenton Water Works just received approval from New Jersey One Call to dig it up so it can be repaired or replaced.”

The leak was reported to the city-owned utility on Oct. 1, prompting a TWW technician to assess the problem, Walker said.

“It was classified as a low-level leak,” Walker added, “but a repair ticket was created, a process guided by our standard operating procedures. The leak does not pose a risk to nearby homes.”

TWW over the last two years has been highly plagued with troubles. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection cited TWW with 12 separate violations this year and 11 separate violations last year, the worst years on record. Some of those violations cited the utility for distributing H2O laced with an excessive level of chronic contaminants.

New Jersey Assemblyman Wayne DeAngelo, a Hamilton Democrat, recently introduced legislation calling for TWW to be regulated in part by a 17-member Mercer Regional Water Services Commission. The assemblyman said there needs to be greater oversight of Trenton Water Works due to the utility’s continued shortcomings.

Trenton City Council over the past year has authorized the city to spend nearly $4 million for outside contractors to bolster operations and maintenance at Trenton Water Works.

TWW provides water sourced from the Delaware River to capital city residents and suburban communities in Ewing, Lawrence, Hamilton and Hopewell townships.

In terms of the water leak on Merham Court, “It is an absolute mess,” a resident told The Trentonian earlier this week, describing TWW as a “horrible” institution.

The TWW spokesman said the leaking “flusher assembly” on Merham Court will be repaired or replaced this weekend if weather permits.

SUBMITTED PHOTO A shallow pond has formed in the middle of Merham Court in Hamilton Township due to a leaking Trenton Water Works assembly pipe, as shown in this photo from Thursday.