Residents and businesses on Indianapolis's near northeast side are grappling with the aftermath of a significant water main break, which left many without service and prompted a boil water advisory in the area. Around 6 p.m. yesterday, Citizens Energy Group announced that water service was restored, but with a catch: pressure would likely be lower than normal until repairs on the main break at 22nd Street and Dr. Andrew J. Brown Avenue are completed, a process expected to take around one week, as reported by FOX59. The boil advisory, meanwhile, is set to remain in effect until 12 p.m. tomorrow.
The severity of the situation was made starkly apparent to locals when the water transformed streets into rivers and sent personal belongings adrift. Maggie Walsh, for instance, was compelled to watch helplessly as her own black Volkswagen was swiftly submerged. "We saw the water and started screaming, 'Get your car out, get your car out!' They got their car out, but by the time I called 911 and got to my car, it was already underwater," Walsh recounted to WISH-TV. The water main, a 36-inch behemoth and one of the largest in the system, according to Citizens Energy Group spokesperson Ben Easley, is a transition main that provides water to a myriad of neighborhoods on the east side.
The damage extended to local businesses as well. Over at Greenfield Signs & Lighting, situated squarely in the flooded zone, foreman Steve Overbey experienced the immediate consequences firsthand. "It just happened so fast, within one minute. The entire shop was underwater, and it was rising and rising. We couldn't go back and shut the main power off," he told WISH-TV. For these businesses, the ramifications of the flood are palpable – ranging from property damage to halted operations.
The advisory from Citizens Energy urges residents to only use boiled or bottled water for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, and washing dishes until the order is lifted, as detailed by WRTV.
