Several homes and portions of the Capitol spent nearly 24 hours without running water
Jul 19, 2024, 8:18 PM | Updated: 8:20 pm
(KSL TV)
SALT LAKE CITY — A water main was shutdown on Main Street near Apricot Avenue Thursday afternoon after crews working on a sewage line grew concerned about destabilizing a fire hydrant.
The water main services 25 connections, mostly homes and portions of the Capitol building complex. The water was turned off from about 4:45 p.m. Thursday to 11:45 a.m. Friday.
Several residents were impacted including Monika Gulla’s family.
“We are sitting here without any water. First, we thought we might have it back the same day and it got really hot everyone knows that,” Gulla said.
The moment the water stopped
Gulla said she was cooking dinner when she realized the water was turned off and her swamp cooler stopped working.
“We called the city’s emergency line and spoke with a person there. He had no sympathy for us. He said, ‘it is not our fault, it is not a public utility company, it’s a private contractor,’” Gulla said.
Gulla said she was concerned about the city’s response to the incident including not being notified and the amount of time the water main was shut off, especially considering the extreme weather temperatures and elderly residents in her neighborhood most of whom rely on swamp coolers to ventilate their homes.
“It was very hot. We couldn’t sleep,” Gulla said
They were making do with bottled water and small fans. One of her granddaughters was sick and had to leave home to find a public restroom.
Fire hydrant concerns
The contractor, Elevation Plumbing, Heating and Air, hired by a homeowner to fix a sewage line said they grew concerned they would destabilize a fire hydrant because of the sandy and unstable soil.
“I apologize, when it comes to jobs like this there are so many moving parts,” said Fernando Landin of Elevation Plumbing, Heating and Air.
Landin said they called the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities for assistance and followed their recommendation to shut down the water main.
“The city was not aware of this project…When we were brought in, it was pretty late in the game. We had to get the water shut off right away to minimize any damage to homes,” said Chloe Morroni, communications and public engagement manager for the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities.
According to Morroni, the contractor failed to inform them of the project leading to the lack of communication with neighbors.
“In this case as far as we can tell, they did not pull the proper permits so that was not done, so those people did not have that notification,” Morroni said. “That’s why the permitting process is so crucial. It brings the city into the whole process.”
Financially responsible
According to Morroni, city crews officially took over fixing the sewage line Friday morning and the contractor will be held financially responsible.
“They will be billed for our time for doing that,” Morroni said.
Under normal circumstances, Morroni residents should receive a 48-hour notice of water main closures. When the work is done by a private contractor, it is the contractor’s responsibility to notify the residents. If the city is doing the work, then it falls on the city’s shoulders to notify residents.
For businesses, a 72-hour notice is required according to Morroni.
The only exception is an emergency situation when Morroni says they are not required to inform residents.
“In those circumstances it is all hands-on deck to get things fixed,” Morroni said.
However, Landin denies the city’s claims that his company did not request and receive a permit for the project. Landin provided several documents to KSL TV indicating a permit was granted for the project. News Specialist Garna Mejia is reviewing that information and will update this article.
The Salt Lake City Public Utilities website has information on emergency water outages, it can be viewed by clicking here.