A water main break near the Jacques Cartier Bridge in Montreal has closed down several streets and flooded basements of homes in the area, says the mayor.
The advisory affects about 150,000 residents in Montreal’s east side.
Water from the break was sent gushing down streets in the early morning of Aug. 16, with firefighters knocking on doors around 6 a.m. local time to get residents evacuated from their homes.
In the social media post, Plante said the city had a command post in place and teams were on the ground looking for the cause. Work is being done to close the valves and plan for repairs, she said.
“The area should be avoided throughout the day to allow for restoration work,” she said in the post.
Plante said at a news conference in Montreal on Aug. 16 that as the repair work progresses, less water is appearing in the streets, but that “it doesn’t mean that it’s all good.” She said the public should continue to avoid impacted areas for the rest of the day.
“Even if there’s no water, please respect those parameters, because it will help them to do the work,” she said.
The pipe that is the source of the flooding, is more than two metres in diameter and was installed in 1985. Officials said that asphalt and concrete above the broken section of pipe needs to be cleared before they can determine the seriousness of the problem.
Power has been cut to the affected area as a precaution. It has left about 14,000 residents without electricity.
An estimated 100 homes have been flooded and residents removed, authorities said.
“The Red Cross will take care of the victims immediately,” Plante said in the social media post. “We have also opened the Ville-Marie borough council chamber at 800, boul. de Maisonneuve E. to accommodate the affected population.”
Montreal fire department Chief Martin Guilbault said at the press conference that once everything was under control and set up they would be going door to door to make sure residents returned to their homes safely.
