NE Bend water main repaired after break, flooding

Repair crews finished work Wednesday afternoon, replacing a 12-inch water main in northeast Bend that ruptured in the early-morning hours. sending deep water swirling into a few homes and basements, prompting evacuations and road closures while leaving about 15 homes without water for much of the day.

City crews quickly began work to clean up the mess and start repairing the main, which broke shortly before 5 a.m. on Northeast Eighth Street between Ravenwood Drive and Dyer Road, said city Communications Director Justin Finestone.

The break – the most serious in Bend in some time — sent about 300,000 gallons of water rushing through the neighborhood. Crews later found an 8 1/2-foot-long crack in the half-century-old cast iron pipe. Over time, pressure on the pipe eroded it.

“I heard a really loud crash, and I thought it was thunder and lightning,” said homeowner Heidi Robles “It sounded like it was pouring rain. It was just flooding under my back deck. My basement is completely flooded — like about a foot from the ceiling.”

Water service has been restored to those affected in the area, Finestone said in an update shortly before 4 p.m.

The standing water was pumped out of the area by mid-morning, and a new pipe was going in while homeowners began cleaning up the mess.

But roads remained closed while crews continue to repair damage to Eighth Street. He said the city “hopes to at least partially open roads in the area by 5:30 p.m.”

The pipeline that failed is abouty 50 years old, Finestone said Utility Department officials say the cast iron pipe broke because of its age and the rocky soil it was installed in.

Two homes had severe damage and one took the brunt of the damage, as their basement filled with water. The residents said they’d just finished repairs on flood damages after their dishwasher broke.

Drivers were urged to avoid Eighth Street between Butler Market Road and Dyer Court while repairs were under way.