Water Warnings Out All Over As Temperatures Rise & Mains Break
Posted February 21, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
That welcome warmth you’re feeling this week comes with a price.
All that sun and those higher temperatures we’ve been experiencing are playing havoc with our water mains. There have been dozens of breaks across the city over the past 48 hours.
The freezing and thawing has caused our rapidly aging infrastructure – now 50-100 years old in some parts of the city – to literally spring a leak.
Since January there have been more than 500 breaks, closing parts of some streets and sending cascades of H20 into unhappy homeowners’ basements.
Officials warn you can expect more of the same as the temperatures rise and fall over the next few days and into next week. If you spot a problem, call (416) 338-8888 right away.
But it’s not just flowing water that’s creating concern about the changeable climate in T.O.
All that snow that’s been melting onto the sidewalk is creating some tricky problems for those on foot, as well. Many areas are filled with a combination of water and slush as the remnants of last week’s big winter storm melts away.
And it freezes after the sun goes down, creating a dangerous glaze that unaware pedestrians may not be able to see and a very slippery surface when the temperature drops.
There are also warnings out about ice conditions.
As we told you in Monday, two girls slipped on an embankment in Brampton last week and fell through the ice into a creek. Both barely escaped with their lives.
You’re advised to keep your kids and your pets away from rapidly swelling creeks and rivers. And the problem could get worse next week as the February thaw reaches new heights.
Forecasters are predicting temperatures could soar to as high as 7 or 8C starting on Monday.
For the full forecast, click here.
