For a stretch of Mountain View neighborhoods near Cuesta Park, the taps suddenly went quiet yesterday after city officials cut water service in response to a contractor mistake that may have contaminated a live water main.
The emergency shutdown hit homes on Cuesta Drive, Leona Lane, Montalto Drive, Drucilla Drive and Carla Court. City crews raced to isolate the problem pipe and keep the rest of the system clean while officials sorted out what went wrong.
City: Contractor Slurry Contacted Live Main
According to the City of Mountain View, a contractor working near the intersection of Bonita Avenue and Cuesta Drive allowed a slurry mix to come into contact with a live water main during work on Friday. Once the breach was discovered, crews began shutting off water to the affected homes and coordinating the response with the on-site contractor.
As soon as the City became aware of the situation, City crews began shutting off the water to the affected households.
— City of Mountain View (@MountainViewGov) April 25, 2026
The streets that are affected by the temporary water shutoff are Cuesta Drive, Leona Lane, Montalto Drive, Drucilla Drive, and Carla Court.
Crews Isolate Line, Still No Timeline for Restoration
As reported by SFGATE, the city issued an alert Friday afternoon and workers moved in to shut off service around the impacted block while they secured the main. At the time, officials had no estimate for how long the outage would last and urged residents to hang tight while crews assessed the extent of the problem.
What Residents Should Do
Affected customers are advised to monitor official city updates and contact the City of Mountain View Public Works at (650) 903-6329 to report issues. If you are without running water, keep bottled water on hand for drinking and basic hygiene and follow any instructions from public-works staff about when service is restored and how to flush your household plumbing, if needed.
Health and Regulatory Context
When a drinking water main is suspected of contamination, state rules provide public notification templates and may require precautionary steps, such as boil-water notices and targeted sampling. The California State Water Resources Control Board publishes guidance on how systems must respond to potential contamination. Mountain View will be required to use those procedures if testing results or regulators determine that additional actions are necessary.
