ELLSWORTH, Maine ― Water service was fully restored to about 150 residences on Tuesday in the Bridge Hill area after two water main breaks over the weekend.
Ellsworth Water Department crews spent about 10 hours repairing breaks that came within yards of one another on Surry Road near Westwood Drive at about 9 a.m. Sunday, City Manager David Cole said.
Traffic on Surry Road was reduced to one lane until the repair was finished.
A boil-water order issued Sunday was lifted at about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday when tests for bacterial contamination came back negative, Water Department Superintendent Reggie Winslow said.
Repair costs have not yet been tallied.
The water main in that area is at least 75 years old, and that was likely the primary reason for its failure. City officials did not have an exact record available of the main’s history, but it was likely installed in the 1940s or earlier, Public Works Director Lisa Sekulich said.
“It’s really hard to tell [why lines fail]. Usually it’s age, but some of the stuff in the ground is better than the newer stuff you can buy today,” Sekulich said.
The Surry Road-area main is among several that the city will likely replace over the next three or four years. Deane Street between Water and High streets, Beals Avenue between High and Main streets, and Church Street between Oak and School streets are the other targeted areas, Sekulich said.
No major water-main replacement projects are slated for this year, but Sekulich said they might be needed in a few years. With lines that date back to the 1890s, the city maintains a regular replacement schedule that curtails the need for large-scale replacements.
About the biggest repair project Ellsworth faces this year is the replacement of three tanks that are part of water towers. That will happen this summer and cost about $700,000, Sekulich said.