KINGSTON -- Pennsylvania American Water hopes now that the broken pipe has been uncovered, crews will finally be able to fix the huge water main break in Luzerne County by the end of the day.
Water was back on Wednesday in some parts of Luzerne County, but other homes and businesses are still high and dry.
It was around 5 a.m. Wednesday when crews finally uncovered that broken water main that has been causing major problems in Luzerne County since Tuesday morning.
Pennsylvania American Water says more than 6,600 homes and businesses were affected by this break. Some still have no water, some have low pressure but the hope now is that this problem will be fixed by Wednesday night.
On this day after a 126-year-old water main burst, water continued to pour all over Walnut Street and Mercer Avenue in Kingston, leaving thousands of people without a reliable water source.
Pennsylvania American Water crews were able to dig up the water main shortly after 5 a.m. but a big mess still clogs the streets right in front of Gerard Regis' home. Regis says he had to go out and buy bottled water Tuesday. His faucet is running again.
"Yesterday morning when I got home, it was terrible because I had to take a shower and there was no water so I went to the store and got water so I could take a bath. It was really terrible," said Regis.
But while people near the water main break now have running water, a little over a mile away in Luzerne, the faucets are still dry, forcing many businesses to close and turn away customers.
"You need the water to run your business and it's very important all around here and I feel sorry for all my neighbors," said Mary Duque at Ads Dry Cleaning and Tailoring.
Ads Dry Cleaning and Tailoring is actually only one of a few businesses that is open along Main Street in Luzerne. Owners inside say it hasn't been easy because not only have they had to haul in water but they even had to take some clothes home to make sure they were washed properly and ready on time.
"Now we are pressing the shirts and filling up the boilers that need water, it's a constant fill, we are filling that up by hand with buckets of water," said Duque. "It's one big pain, but we are dealing with it. It's tough but we sure hope that it gets back on today because, I tell you, I'm run down."
Water company officials encourage people who have water to watch for low pressure or discoloration.
Until service is back on, water tankers are available for people affected by the break.
Tankers are located at:
- Gateway Shopping Center, Edwardsville
- Kingston DPW Building, 3rd Avenue, Kingston
- Intersection of Walnut and Wyoming Avenue, Kingston
- Luzerne Shopping Center, Luzerne
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