1920s Water Main Bursts on Baltimore Avenue

An 87-year-old water main line burst in downtown Hyattsville yesterday afternoon, cutting water service to seven businesses in the EYA development north of Jefferson Street. 

"We never really know what exactly causes a failure," said Lyn Riggins, spokesperson for the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission. "I can tell you this pipe dates back to 1925…I can't say for sure that aging infrastructure is the cause, but it's an 87-year-old pipe."

Repairs shut down the two northbound lanes of Baltimore Avenue for hours last night, forcing traffic to a single lane in each direction beginning in the early evening around rush hour. 

Problems with the line were first reported in the early afternoon, and by 1:30 p.m. crews from Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission had cut water to the line. This forced some businesses, like Elevation Burger and Chipolte, to close up for the day. 

A total of seven WSSC customer accounts were affected by the problems. 

By 4:30 p.m., crews were beginning to dig out the pipe. By the time this reporter was heading back from City Council at 10:30 p.m., crews were still on the scene. 

Riggins said that the repair could take a bit longer than normal because of the presence of telecommunication lines near the dig site. 

"This might be a more difficult repair, because when there are lines in the hole, you have to dig by hand to find it," said Riggins.