Days after a critical water main break caused massive outages in Fort Lauderdale, most customers are back to normal.
Exceptions include Oakland Park and the neighborhoods of Fort Lauderdale around Harbour Beach.
About 5 p.m. Sunday, Fort Lauderdale partially lifted a boil-water order after two days of clear tests. The order was put in place Thursday after a Florida Power & Light subcontractor drilled a 6-inch hole into a water main near Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport.
The boil-water order also was lifted Sunday in Davie, Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Wilton Manors and the areas of Tamarac and Lauderhill serviced by Fort Lauderdale.
Oakland Park said on its website that its order was lifted except for these areas: from Andrews west to Interstate 95, Prospect south to Oakland Park Boulevard and including Milbrant Industrial Area between Powerline Road and Interstate 95, north of Prospect Road and from Dixie Highway east to Cherry Creek, Northeast 38 Street south to the city limit.
It was unclear Sunday whether Fort Lauderdale’s other water customers at Port Everglades and in Sea Ranch Lakes remained under a boil-water order.
Fort Lauderdale’s Harbour Beach along with Harbour Inlet, Harbour Isles and the Breakwater Surf Homes will be under a boil-water order until at least Tuesday, said city spokesman Chaz Adams.
“Testing that was conducted in these areas did not pass on both days,” said Adams. For boil-water orders to be lifted, tests must pass on two consecutive days, he said.
News of the boil-water order’s end was welcomed in the Fort Lauderdale business community.
“We think it’s wonderful,” said Francisco Nunez, manager of Big City Tavern on Las Olas Boulevard.
He said his staff had been using a mix of paper and plastic plates and utensils for days. They also had to boil water to fill the dishwashers and buy bottled water for drinking.
“It was a little bit of a hassle to do that constantly every day for four days. There is only so much water you can boil,” he said Sunday night. “We are coming back to normal service with our dishes and our plates and dishwashers.”
At Funky Buddha Brewery in Oakland Park, workers had been using water stored in their brewing tanks over the weekend.
“We’re back on city water and outside of the boil zone,” said John Linn, marketing director, on Monday afternoon. “So no further issues here.”
The crisis impacted an estimated 220,000 people, prompted national headlines and trained a spotlight on the city’s aging water system.
Shortly before noon Sunday, Fort Lauderdale faced yet another water-related emergency as crews raced to repair a water main beak in the vicinity of 1400 East Oakland Park Blvd.
As of 5 p.m. Sunday, the city said that repair has now been completed and that bacteriological surveys show that the water is safe to drink and for all other uses.
For now, Sunday’s water main break remains a mystery.
“I do not know the cause, but it does not appear to be related to the situation that occurred last week,” Adams said.
Fort Lauderdale distributed approximately 8,900 cases of water to residents during the four days since the initial break.
Last week’s break took place on Wednesday but started out as a small leak, a city official said. The pipe collapsed while crews were making overnight repairs, and that’s what forced the city into crisis mode.
Most water pipes carry water from the plant to homes and businesses.
Not this one. It was bringing water from wellfields to the city’s main water plant, Fiveash Regional Water Treatment Plant, which supplies most of the city’s drinking water.
Crews made temporary repairs to the water main and a permanent fix is on the way, city officials say.
Work is expected to begin early next week.
Crews will redirect the water flow so a contractor can replace the damaged pipe. No interruptions to water service are expected. City Hall and other offices will operate on their normal schedules Monday.
Customers with questions are urged to call Fort Lauderdale’s 24-Hour Call Center at 954-828-8000.
This is a developing news story. Please check back for updates.
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4554.
