Philadelphia water main break from July still under repair in Queen Village

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — A water main break from July in Philadelphia’s Queen Village section is still causing issues for neighbors.

On Saturday, Action News spoke with residents who say they’re frustrated and want things resolved.

“It’s been eight months in February,” said resident Susan Stahl.

Around 6th and Bainbridge streets, some residents say the area looked like a river back in July.

Some said they lost everything after water poured into their homes and burst through windows. The water main is around 130 years old, and it’s been taking a while to fix.

“With the dog and things like that, just trying to walk the neighborhood. It gets complicated to maneuver because you’re going out of a whole section of an area where you live. It’s frustrating,” said resident Shayne Shands.

Nearby store employees say it’s affected their business at a time when they’re already struggling because of the pandemic.

“It’s definitely been impacting our business in the sense that we aren’t getting as much foot traffic. It’s hard for people to come to the store to park around the store,” said Anna Sajeski, manager at Lobo Mau.

The City Of Philadelphia sent Action News this statement:

“Given the size of the main break at 6th and Bainbridge and the necessary repairs to water infrastructure, multiple impacted utilities, and the street, the timeline for restoration of the intersection is within expected standards.

The Philadelphia Water Department informed the community and customers immediately following the main break that repairs would take many months.

When work began in October, we met with neighbors to tell them it would be approximately six months to complete from that date, with work hopefully finishing in April 2022.

It appears all the utility work and road repairs are on track to be finished by the estimated completion date.

We understand the frustration of those in the community and appreciate their patience as we coordinate with our utility partners to complete the work as quickly as possible.”

Adam Volk says the water main break has halted the opening of his new restaurant.

“It’s wildly frustrating every step of the way of the way had been frustrating you know we signed the lease three weeks later we lost the building because of the water main break,” said Volk, owner of Redcrest Kitchen.

A spokesperson for PECO said they’ll be installing a new manhole and running a new duct.

The estimated completion could take about three to four weeks.