Water Main Break in Gaithersburg (Video & Photos)

UPDATED 8:30 p.m. on 12/2 Repairs are now complete, according to WSSC.

Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) crews are on the scene of an eight-inch water main break at 178 Gold Kettle Drive in Gaithersburg.

The break was reported at approximately 4:45 a.m. on Dec. 2.

WSSC spokesperson Jerry Irvine said customers reported hearing and feeling something when the break occurred. Once on site, Irvine said it took inspectors longer than usual to shut off the water because of a broken valve. The water was shut off by 7 a.m., Irvine said.

The delay resulted in a pool of water flooding some of the Gaithersburg subdivision, Irvine said, noting some people had to move their cars because of the amount of water pooling in the roadway. He said there have not been any reports of flooded basements.

There are 49 WSSC customers impacted by the water main break and shutoff, according to Irvine.

Repair crews are in route and repair work should begin shortly.

This is the busiest time of year for WSSC crews, according to Irvine.

In fact, Irvine said Wednesday, Nov. 27 was the busiest day of the year with 27 breaks reported in the WSSC service area. A typical break takes generally four to six hours to repair. On Friday, Nov. 29 a water main break in Rockville took over 12 hours to repair because of a split pipe, which complicated the repair.

Irvine said he expects the Gaithersburg break to take the bulk of the day to repair because of the amount of water and debris in the roadway and the damage to the road. He said there is about three to four feet of water at the bottom of the hill from this water main break.