Once the water main is shut down the equipment moves in to excavate the point of the leak.
Equipment operator Ken Adair is careful to avoid the orange paint which marks underground cables.
Oftentimes main breaks create large cavities under pavement (right side).
Crewmen Randy Potts and Patrick May move quickly to set up protective barricades to keep traffic at a safe distance.
Sometimes it takes a lot of barricades.
Safety Officer John Warwick agrees and looks things over just in case.
Meanwhile, Ken is removing the mud and slop.
And . . . keeps a watchful eye out while he's doing it.
Wastewater Crewchief Michael Washington stops by to drop a very important pump to remove the water in the hole where men will be working.
Michael and Patrick make sure it is positioned correctly so water won't run right back into the hole.
Patrick connects the suction hose while John, the Safety Inspector, watches the excavation.
Randy removes the Stainless Steel repair clamp from the box and gets it ready to install.
The main is determined to be 12 inches in diameter and looks to be broken around the pipe rather than a linear split. Notice also that the water is not turned completely off and allowed to run during repairs. This assures that there is no back flow of dirty water into the main.
The pipe is now exposed enough to see that it is a clean break and also the two ends are pulled apart about 1/2 inch.
Ken clears the edge of the excavation of asphalt pieces so they won't be disloged during repair and injure the crewman working in the hole.
The pump is put into action and the water removed from the excavation.
Then Patrick enters the excavation and begins cleaning the mud and debris from around the broken pipe.
Then he cleans the pipe preparing it for the repair clam.
Just a little more to make sure . . .
The cleaner it is the better the clamp works . . .
Now, the clamp is placed over the broken area.
Patrick makes sure the clamp is centered.
And, begins tightening the bolts.
And . . . watches to see if even a small drip appears.
These guys aren't backseat driving, they are Patrick's eyes, watching the walls of the excavation for any sign of movement.
Sometimes it doesn't take long and everything goes just right, this is one of those times and Patrick is finished.
Ken begins to open the valves to bring the full pressure back up.
And . . . Fire hydrants are opened to curtail the possibility of water hammer and to bleed any air out of the pipes.