DORAL, Fla. – A water main ruptured during the evening commute Monday, shutting down a portion of Northwest 41st Street near Florida's Turnpike in Doral.
The view from Sky 10 showed the cracked and crumbling roadway submerged in water. Police said that Northwest 41st Street between Northwest 115th Avenue and Florida's Turnpike will be shut down until further notice.
Traffic piled up in the surrounding area as drivers had to be diverted to avoid the mess.
"We’re looking at several days of repairs to fix this totally," said Miami-Dade Commissioner Jose Pepe Diaz, who represents the Doral area. "Underground, there was a lot of damage done, millions of gallons of water expressed out."
Maggie Santos, a spokeswoman for the city of Doral, said a contractor digging as part of a beautification project for Northwest 41st Street accidentally hit the unmarked water main, causing it to rupture.
Miami Dade County College's west campus suspended all operations because of the flooding. College officials urged students to avoid the area and check the college's social media accounts to find out when classes will resume.
Juan Diasgranados, a spokesman for Miami-Dade County's Metro West Detention Center, said the jail was also affected by the water main break.
"As soon as we were made aware of the situation, a contingency plan went into effect. We will continue to monitor the situation," Diasgranados said.
Crews from Miami-Dade County's Water and Sewer Department were working late Monday to repair the water main.
Kevin Lynskey, director of the Water and Sewer Department, said residents and businesses closest to the water main break will be without water until at least Tuesday.
Others living in the area of the water main break may experience low water pressure and can expect a boil water notice to be in effect for 48 hours starting Monday evening, Lynskey said.
Here are the boundaries for the boil water order:
- From Northwest 136th Place to 107th Avenue and from Northwest 41st Street to Northwest 34th Street.
- From Northwest 107th Ave to 109th Avenue and from Northwest 41st to Northwest 42nd streets.