Water main that erupted into geyser was considered vulnerable beforehand, Montreal says

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The city of Montreal was aware the water main that broke near the Jacques-Cartier Bridge on Friday, flooding nearby homes and businesses, was vulnerable and due to be inspected again.

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Speaking to reporters near the site on Monday, Chantal Morissette, the city’s director of water services, said the pipe in question was last inspected in 2017-2018 and was “under surveillance” since it showed signs of deteriorating.

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“The information we had was that we could wait until the next phase of inspections,” Morissette said, standing before the large crater left behind. “But the pipe burst before, so the corrosion was more advanced than we had suspected.”

Morissette would not confirm what condition the pipe was in at the time of the last inspection beyond noting it was “vulnerable.” She said it is the norm for pipes of its kind to be inspected every five to seven years.

If the city had information the pipe was at imminent risk of bursting, she added, it would have cut it off from network, as it has done in the past with other large pipes.

“It’s always a shock when a pipe burst like that,” Morissette added. “But that’s why we have a preventive inspection program to do our best to stop it before it happens.”

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The nearly two-metre-wide pipe was installed in 1985 and was part of the city’s drinking water network. The city says it is still investigating what caused it to burst.

The break originated on René-Lévesque Blvd., east of de Lorimier Ave., around 5:45 a.m. on Friday. A geyser of water shot several feet into the air over the course of the morning, flooding about 50 homes and 20 businesses.

Roughly 100 people needed to leave their homes and many spent the weekend cleaning up the mess and damage caused by the water. In all, 16 households requested housing help from the Red Cross.

Speaking alongside Morissette on Monday, Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante said she understands the last weeks have been challenging for residents with the flooding and now the water main break.

“It’s been a difficult week for a lot of Montrealers throughout the island,” Plante said, reminding people they have two weeks to file claims with the city. “Our hope is that Montrealers can recover as quickly as possible, knowing how stressful this is for them.”

The main break came exactly a week after Montreal was hit by the remnants of post-tropical storm Debby, which battered the city with a record-breaking 150 millimetres of rain.

A water-main break also occurred near the McGill University Health Centre in July, disrupting service at the hospital for hours.

This report will be updated.

jfeith@postmedia.com

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