Commuters in south Seattle had an unexpected detour Monday morning after a broken pipe sent water cascading onto State Route 99. The lane closures under the 1st Avenue South Bridge near West Marginal Way South and Highland Park Way Southwest caused significant backups, impacting the morning rush-hour traffic. Seattle Police Department urged drivers to find alternate routes, as reported by KOMO News.

Trying to navigate the soggy hazards, drivers encountered slow movement through the massive puddles left behind by a burst fire hydrant along the highway. According to information obtained by KING 5, the standing water hampered the flow of traffic as lanes merged and cars tread carefully through the accumulation.

WSDOT and Seattle Public Utilities teams moved quickly to address the deluge, successfully shutting off the water by approximately 6:45 a.m. Despite their efforts, a considerable volume of water had already inundated the roadways, posing challenges for the early commuters. The spill primarily affected W. Marginal Way, reducing it to one available lane, as MyNorthwest detailed in its report.

While Seattle Public Utilities acknowledged the complication, they clarified that they did not have the capacity to turn off the fire hydrant. Standing by with hands temporarily tied until they received assistance from the state's transportation department showed the lack of immediate control over such critical infrastructure. It was only through the collaborative efforts with WSDOT that the surge could finally be stemmed, leaving commuters to wade through the aftermath.