RICHMOND, Va. — A large water main break at 7th Street and Canal Street in Richmond is threatening Henrico County's ability to provide reliable water service to its customers.
Henrico gets roughly one-third of its water from Richmond through an agreement in place since 1994 that is good through 2040.
The City of Richmond and its contractors were seen pumping water out of a large sinkhole and into street drains Friday afternoon as they worked to address the emergency situation.
"It's not a good feeling to see big holes in city streets," said Noah Ray, who lives in Jackson Ward. "You hope for more."
Ray, who just endured the city's second boil water advisory since January, said he noticed flooding in the area Thursday morning.
"Yesterday in the morning and in the afternoon the whole street right here was closed down due to flooding," Ray said.
Richmond Department of Public Utilities (DPU) employees found the water main break after learning about a sinkhole in that area Thursday morning.
Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas provided information at a press conference Friday morning about why the leak in the city water main is impacting the county’s ability to provide reliable water service.
"There is water that is being pumped through that pipe and it is in distress. We are being told that repair could take until Monday, so if that pipe fails we are going to be out of water," a spokesperson said.
Rhonda Johnson, a spokeswoman with DPU, says the city is still investigating what caused the water main to leak.
The city began a water valve replacement project in this exact area on May 19, with work expected to last until July.
Multiple holes in the road are associated with the project, and water was observed spraying out of a pipe in one of them.
Despite the timing, Johnson said the replacement project is not currently considered to be a factor that contributed to the water main leak.
Ray hopes city leaders will be transparent about what caused the issue.
"Is this on the city, is this on the city not taking better care to hold the people developing this city accountable? I'm very curious about that," Ray said.
Johnson said once the city is able to drain the line and inspect it, they will be able to determine the cause of the leak.
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