Water Pipeline Repairs Close Road, Businesses In Downtown Danville

A major street was closed and several dozen businesses were without water Friday morning while East Bay Municipal Utility District crews repaired a broken 10-inch underground pipeline in downtown Danville.

Water service was shut off to 56 customers, mostly small businesses. Water is expected to be restored at 6 p.m. Friday, according to Charles Hardy, a spokesman for EBMUD.

He added Diablo Road suffered "extensive pavement damage" and won't re-open until midnight.

The pipe broke about 6 p.m. Thursday, flooding Diablo Road, Hartz Avenue and other nearby streets, the same area where the city held its annual Fourth of July parade on Thursday morning.

Hardy said several businesses were flooded and Wells Fargo Bank had a transformer go out.

Water finally stopped flowing from the pipe about 12:30 a.m. The water on flooded streets slowly subsided, leaving behind a thin layer of mud. Hartz and East Linda Mesa Avenue were re-opened about 6:30 a.m.

On Friday morning, EBMUD crews kept Diablo Road closed while they looked for the portion of the pipe that had busted.

It was originally thought a 48-inch pipe had broken, but crews discovered it was a 10-inch pipe installed in 1931 that had ruptured.

Water was being pumped out of underground tunnels and was flowing along the eastern gutter of Hartz Avenue.

Water service was shut off to business at the intersection of Hartz and Diablo Road.

Businesses that don't rely on water such as Jero'l Artistic Hair Designs and Fannie Designs & Cleaners were open Friday morning.

However, the Tower Grille of Danville was closed. Owner David Deldar heard about the water service being shut off when he came to work at 6 a.m.

He had planned to be open from 10:30 a.m. to 2 a.m., but he instead called his 17 employees who had Friday shifts and told them not to come into work.

Deldar questioned why EBMUD crews didn't start fixing the water pipeline before Friday morning.

"I'm very upset," he said, "but when things happen you've got to work it out."

He was hoping the pipe could be fixed by Friday afternoon, allowing him to open for Friday evening.

A few blocks away, the Firehouse Bar & Grille had better luck. The restaurant, which opened May 1 in the former site of the Rising Loafer, had water service.

Diane Anderson, a co-owner along with her husband, Warren, and Doug and Claudia Himan, was grateful they were able to open for business.

"We're thankful to have water," she said.

Bay City News Service contributed to this report