FAYETTEVILLE — A ruptured water line flooded Center Street just east of the downtown square Wednesday.
A contractor boring under the street punctured an 8-inch pipe shortly before noon. Leon Roach, superintendent for Fayette Tree and Trench, said his crew was preparing to run fiber-optic cable from the University of Arkansas Global Campus building to East Square Plaza, where the university’s Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History is moving.
Water ran over the curb on Center Street in the 20 minutes it took city workers to turn off the water. By then, asphalt on Center Street buckled, and red mud caked the street and sidewalks. David Jurgens, city utilities director, estimated as much as 80,000 gallons of water escaped.
Traffic was blocked on Center Street all afternoon, and several businesses on the south side of the street went without running water for about three hours.
Angelo Amabile, owner of Vetro 1925 Ristorante, 17 E. Center St., said people were eating lunch Wednesday when water began pouring into his restaurant’s underground wine room. About a half-foot of standing water remained an hour after the incident.
“It’s a disaster,” Amabile said.
City workers spent Wednesday afternoon tearing up the street surface and replacing a 5-foot section of pipe. Center Street opened Wednesday evening, but repair is needed on the street surface. Terry Gulley, city transportation services director, said his staff is assessing what work will be done.
Jurgens said the contractor for the project will be liable for all damage. He couldn't provide a cost estimate for repair Wednesday afternoon.
Roach said soft soil and limited sight lines under Center Street led to the accident.
“I’ve never had one like this happen,” Roach said. “But I guess there’s a first time for everything.”