This story has been updated to add more details about the break.
NORTHAMPTON – A water main break caused a large tree to sink about eight feet into a hole, hitting a house and power lines as it dropped.
The water main break was reported at about 7:45 a.m. on Winter Street. The road is closed and it is expected take most of the day to make repairs, Fire Capt. Mark Curtin said.
Water flowed into some residents’ basements. The damage was not severe and the Fire Department helped residents clear the water, he said.
The break caused multiple problems, including the unusual sinking of the tree, he said.
“The tree went straight down,” he said. “It was about 50 feet across and it dropped straight down to about the first limbs.”
When the tree dropped into the sink hole, it hit power lines and a house. It caused minimal damage to the house and residents did not lose power, he said.
Crews from National Grid along with the town’s Water Department and Department of Public Works and Fire Department all assisted at the scene, Curtin said.
It is expected to take most of the day to restore water service because crews must first remove the tree from the hole to reach the broken main, he said.
A tree was uprooted and fell on a home, Western Mass News said.
The Fire Department and the Water Department is working at the scene, police officials said.
