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‘Substantial’ water line break occurs in Peters Township

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Courtesy of Gretchen Sanders

Peters Township Fire Department reported there was a “substantial” water line break in the area of East McMurray and Bebout roads.

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Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter

Water spews from a broken line Wednesday morning in the area of East McMurray and Bebout roads in Peters Township.

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Motorists were restricted to one lane as they passed a water line break Wednesday on East McMurray Road in Peters Township.

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Motorists were restricted to one lane as they passed a water line break Wednesday on East McMurray Road in Peters Township.

About 100 Peters Township residents should have water restored by this morning after Pennsylvania American Water crews complete work on a damaged line.

Traffic was restricted to one lane in the area of East McMurray and Bebout roads as crews worked on a water transmission line break Wednesday evening.

Pennsylvania American Water reported late Tuesday evening, a PennDOT contractor struck a 20-inch transmission line in the 600 block of East McMurray Road. Service was interrupted for the repair around noon Wednesday, and the company expected the approximately 100 residents with low or no water pressure to have service restored this morning.

Starting at 3 p.m. Wednesday, a water tanker was available at the Peters Township municipal building, at 610 E. McMurray Road, for those affected by the outage. Customers were advised bring their own containers. There is a single-lane closure between Thompsonville Road and Bittersweet Circle, and Pennsylvania American Water anticipated normal traffic patterns to resume by this evening rush hour.

Peters Township police Chief Douglas Grimes said the break was in a transmission line and not a water main and did not have a major impact on water to residents or the township. A transmission line carries water from one location to another without branching off onto side streets. The initial fear was the outage would be more widespread.

However, the water was expected to damage newly paved East McMurray Road, which will need repairs. Grimes said that would be the largest result from Wednesday morning’s break.

Peters Township schools had two trucks on standby should any of their buildings lose water, but they were not necessary. Early notification about the issue was helpful, said communications coordinator Shelly Belcher. Buses needed to be routed around the affected intersection.

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