After days without clean water, thousands of Granada Hills and Porter Ranch residents are a step closer to restored service as crews with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power have complete repairs to a damaged underground water pipe.
The issue began on Aug. 5 when a valve at a pump station that controls the flow of water to a 10-million-gallon water tank broke during repairs.
Installed in 1967, officials said the valve got stuck in a closed position and severely slowed the flow of water to some 9,200 residents in the communities.
Reaching the damaged valve, which was buried 20 feet underground, was treacherous work as crews encountered fiber optic cables, as well as a high-pressure gas line and oil line, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Residents in the area have been under a “boil water notice” since the incident that could remain in place until Monday or Tuesday. The water now flowing through the repaired valve needs to be tested, which could take as long as 18 hours, and the process is then required to be repeated before the water is considered safe for drinking, cooking and cleaning.
Adding insult to injury, on Saturday a temporary pipe meant to transport water from the Metropolitan Water District to a city pipe in Granada Hills burst, sending water cascading into the Nazarian family’s backyard and pushing debris in and around their home before the water line was shut off.
As of Sunday, the family told KTLA’s Rachel Menitoff that they are still waiting to get an estimate on the cost of repairs to their home.
While residents are going into their sixth day of having to boil water, LADWP has set up five locations where bottled water can be picked up and used for essential purposes, such as drinking, cooking, laundry and showering.
That information can be found here.
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