What was supposed to be a routine fiber-optic upgrade in Longwood’s Hidden Oak Estates turned into a soggy mess, ripping up a quiet cul-de-sac, cracking an underground water main, and sending water gushing into a nearby retention pond for hours. Crews stayed on scene through the night to uncover and fix the break while neighbors watched pavement and curbs get torn out and hauled away. City commissioners and residents now say the incident laid bare some serious gaps in how contractors are watched when they dig in the public right-of-way.
City: a string of utility hits tied to fiber work
City Manager William Watts told ClickOrlando the Hidden Oak Estates mess is not an isolated headache. Longwood has already logged more than a dozen underground utility strikes in 2026, and three of those were serious. “These major incidents were tied to WOW!” Watts said, adding that several other strikes involved Lumen and Sentry.
In response, Watts told commissioners the city will start documenting valve status before projects begin and is budgeting for a contractor to test Longwood’s roughly 20,000 valves twice a year. The goal is to make it faster to shut off water and limit how long neighborhoods have to live with the fallout when something goes wrong.
Neighbors’ accounts and WOW! response
Residents say the project started quietly enough: crews left spray-painted survey marks and door-hanger notices from WOW!, then at some point a leak opened up and water began racing down the cul-de-sac into the pond. According to ClickOrlando, a WOW! spokesperson said, “The contractor quickly contacted city officials to report the leak.”
Neighbors, meanwhile, described watching pavement wash away and said they experienced a brief power outage while crews dug down to reach the busted water main. Homeowners now find themselves in a standoff with contractors over what comes next. The company is talking about a smaller, perimeter fix, while residents say too much of the cul-de-sac was torn up for a partial patch to cut it.
How Longwood plans to keep this from happening again
City leaders say they want to tighten things up before fiber crews come back. Longwood plans to act as the primary point of contact for affected homeowners and to conduct more thorough inspections and valve documentation before work begins.
The city’s Public Utilities page notes that Florida’s Sunshine 811 system is called in ahead of any underground digging so locators can mark buried lines. The right-of-way permit process also lays out when contractors must apply and be inspected.
Officials say those existing steps, combined with closer oversight and better documentation, should help contain neighborhood disruptions the next time fiber installation teams roll into town.
Legal and accountability angle
Longwood moved to protect itself financially last year, adopting an ordinance that requires fiber companies to provide a letter of credit before any work begins. City staff says that requirement gives Longwood a financial backstop if a contractor walks away without fully restoring the right-of-way.
Municipal codes around the state commonly let cities demand that kind of security. As one example, Orlando’s ordinance addresses letters of credit and other guarantees for franchise or right-of-way work.
What residents say they need now
Neighbors in Hidden Oak Estates are clear about their expectations. They want the entire cul-de-sac rebuilt, not just a 50-foot perimeter repair, and they want a specific timeline for when everything will be put back together.
City staff says the companies involved have been cooperative so far and that commissioners will track next steps at upcoming meetings, but residents insist they will keep the heat on until the street looks the way it did before the fiber crews ever arrived.
