Subfreezing temperatures reportedly caused the water line break, forcing hundreds of Detroit residents out of their homes.
Close to 300 Detroit residents have been displaced after a city water main break caused flooding of their homes this week. On Tuesday, Detroit Water & Sewerage Department director Gary Brown explained that it may be six weeks before residents can return to their homes.
Early Monday morning, the water line broke, causing icy water to flood nearly 400 homes in Southwest Detroit, disabling furnaces and leaving residents with no heat. At a Tuesday press conference, Mayor Mike Duggan described the scene as “a monumental hole in the ground” and confirmed that even with city-funded hotel accommodations available, some residents opted to stay with loved ones or remain in their homes.
“We’ve shifted from emergency response to full recovery mode,” Duggan said, outlining efforts to repair the water main and restore homes to livable conditions, per NBC News.
City crews are still working to pinpoint the exact location of the breach. Todd King, chief resiliency officer at the Great Lakes Water Authority, said excavation efforts began Tuesday after workers spent hours removing water from the site. Once the pipe is fully exposed and the break is located, a team of contractors will replace the damaged section—an effort expected to take at least two weeks.
In addition to the water main break, a nearby city-owned pipe was also damaged, and a gas line ruptured. Duggan acknowledged the aging infrastructure but took responsibility for the failure, calling it “a failure of a Detroit-built, GLWA-maintained water main.”
“The exact cause isn’t known, but it’s most likely a combination of aging infrastructure and freezing temperatures,” city spokesperson John Roach said.
Among those rescued from flooded homes was one man who suffered breathing complications and was hospitalized before being stabilized and expected to be released Tuesday. In total, first responders rescued 94 people, including 31 children, as the crisis unfolded in the early hours of Monday. Some were carried to safety using a front-loader tractor.
The city has ramped up its response, deploying 80 inspectors to the flood zone to assess damage. Duggan hopes inspections will be completed by the end of the week so repairs can begin on Monday.
Meanwhile, power and heat remain out for dozens of homes, and residents are being urged to take advantage of emergency housing. “You can stay in that hotel until your power and your heat are back on,” Duggan assured.
As the city works toward long-term solutions, police patrols will increase in the affected areas, offering residents some peace of mind while they wait for answers—and for their homes to be livable again.
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