Community

Repairs Continue to North Wheeling Water Main Break

Emma Delk

Road closures in North Wheeling will continue as the Wheeling Water Department works to fix a 14-inch water main break. The break occurred at approximately 12:40 p.m. on Sunday, with the Wheeling Water Department working through Monday night to fix the problem.

While it no longer looked like a small river was running down Main Street on Monday evening, water still had puddled on the road.

Motorists were able to turn north on W.Va. 2 out of Wheeling Tunnel as of Monday evening. That turn had been closed due to the break. Crews were on Eighth Street with heavy machinery working on repairs.

Main Street was closed on Sunday due to the break but is now open, while Eighth Street received the most damage from the break and is still closed. Not only are there deep holes in the pavement, but debris litters the street along with mud and sediment.

Danielle Kelley, a utility lead worker for the Wheeling Water Department, says they will be working overnight to get the valve cut in that will fix the main break. Once the main break is repaired, steps can be taken toward opening the roads back up.

Until the break is fixed, Kelley warned that a few houses may not have water, though he noted a majority of houses in the area affected by the break have their water back on.

"We have no idea why these pipe breaks happen," Kelley added. "They just blow up."

The West Virginia Department of Highways also needs to finish cleaning up the debris along the trails and streets that were affected before Eighth Street and Tenth Street can open. Once that occurs, Wheeling Department of Operations Superintendent Steve Johnston said the City of Wheeling Division of Operations can begin repairs on the pavement of Eighth and Main streets, which were buckled by the rush of water from the break.