A water main break at the intersection of Hwy. 5 and 10th St. caused some problems for citizens of Humboldt last week.
"We've had some older pipeline in and around the downtown area that has aged out," explained Jennifer Brooks, director of communications for the City.
Brooks explained that a lot of the City's infrastructure has been in place since 1913 and much of it is in need of repair.
Crews began work on the break the morning of August 15 and were finished by the end of the week.
During this time, a detour was in place for Hwy. 5, complete with a temporary four-way stop at the intersection of Hwy. 20 and 7th Avenue, to help alleviate traffic issues. This was the second time in a week that a detour had to be put in place on Hwy. 5 because of work that needed to be done below street level. Previously, the road was dug up in front of the courthouse because of scheduled work that needed to happen at the courthouse.
Since it was a major break, said Brooks, they put the 700 block of 10th St. under a Precautionary Drinking Water Advisory.
"Due to the length of old pipe replaced and length of time the water main was depressurized, it was necessary to issue (this advisory)," said Brooks.
The advisory will stay in place until tests have been done to determine whether or not the water is safe to drink. As of August 17, the advisory was still in place.
Hwy. 5 wasn't the only road with a city crew working on it.
Crews were also out at 6th Ave. by the former Merchants Bank of Canada building.
"They are working on servicing issues to the bank building," explained Brooks.
Since the Humboldt and District Museum and Gallery has taken over stewardship of the building, they have been working on renovations to get the building in good condition. City crews were helping along the process with service connections, explained Brooks.
