After the flood: Residents, officials assess impact of W. Philly water-main break

The day after a 36-inch water main burst and flooded dozens of homes in a West Philadelphia neighborhood, the water was gone from the basements, but the stench of mold and sewage reeked throughout the homes.

Residents near Westminster Avenue and 52d Street were assessing the damage to their homes Monday morning, the start of what is sure to be a long and arduous process of getting their basements cleaned and their houses fixed, or moving out altogether, and getting compensation from the city.

"My step is starting to cave, and my house is starting to smell like mold . . . and mind you, it's only been a day," said Odessa Washington, 39, who lives with three of her children on the 500 block of Creighton Street.

Like many on her block, Washington was sitting on her porch Monday, waiting for news from city officials of what she is supposed to do.

Washington and several neighbors were still without power or gas Monday afternoon. Water had been restored to all homes. City officials said they were working as fast as they could to fix the damage and turn all utilities back on, but they cautioned that it could be days before everything was working again.

Even then, some homes might be uninhabitable. Ten million gallons of water rushed through the streets and into basements and homes early Sunday when the cast-iron main burst.

In recent years, Philadelphians have put up with several major water-main breaks and any number of lesser ones. And in an old city that relies in part on miles of mains built in the late 19th century, more pipes are bound to break.

"They are bursting out all over and will continue bursting," City Controller Alan Butkovitz said Monday. He said the city badly needs - but can't afford - "a major retrofit."

His office is working on an analysis of the city's aging infrastructure.

In the last five years, the city has doubled the amount of money it spends on water infrastructure from $22 million to $44 million. That is expected to cover the replacement of 28 miles of water pipes in a year.

At that pace, the city can "replace the full system every 100 years, rather than every 125 years," John DiGiulio, the Water Department's spokesman, said. "The average life expectancy of a water main is 100 to 125 years, so we work to keep up with that number."

The main that burst Sunday was 130 years old. Despite its age, it was not on the city's radar for replacement.

"This water main was last inspected approximately two weeks ago, but there was no indication of a problem with it," DiGiulio said. "No leaks were found, and no other issues presented themselves that would have indicated a potential break."

The break's cause has not yet been determined. DiGiulio said a full inspection will be done to try to identify it.

Factors including age, pressure, and weather can contribute to a main's breaking. Breaks are a daily occurrence in a system whose smallest mains are 4 inches in diameter and largest are 93. But most breaks are so small that the general public does not notice - until the big ones pop, like the one in West Philadelphia.

"We'll do some 'broken' diagnostics from that main . . . and we'll begin assessing what kind of repairs we have ahead of us and how much of the main we have to replace," DiGiulio said Monday at the scene of the break.

Nearby, Karla Jackson, who lives in the 500 block of North Creed Street, said she and her husband spent Sunday night at a hotel, but were back in hopes that the city could help them clean up. Their basement steps were washed away with the flood that rushed through Sunday morning.

"The water was so deep that I could actually open up my basement door and dive," she said.

By Monday morning, the Water Department had pumped out the Jacksons' basement. But they still had no gas or electricity.

"People don't have money like that, to spend a night at a hotel every night, things like that," Jackson said. "This is our house and . . . it's something that the water company is in fault of, and we shouldn't have to pay for their error."

The city has a $500,000 liability cap for damage claims from homeowners and business owners in such incidents. If damages exceed the cap, the city has to go to court to determine what percentage each claimant will receive.

Residents near 21st and Bainbridge Streets, where a 48-inch pipe burst in July 2012, received 57 percent of their claims, which totaled $1.3 million. Claims are still being negotiated for those affected by the December 2013 water-main break near Frankford and Torresdale Avenues. The damage from water that gushed from that 106-year-old pipe could also surpass the cap.

DiGiulio said the claims process for Sunday's break should begin soon. "We will replace your hot-water heater, we will clean out the basement, and we will remove the water, that's at our cost," DiGiulio said. "After that, they will have to go through a claims process to file a claim against us."

The Red Cross set up a shelter Sunday at West Philadelphia High School, but hardly anyone used it, Anthony Tornetta, spokesman for the Philadelphia Red Cross, said.

The Red Cross is helping two families that were displaced from homes and needed housing, food, and clothing, Tornetta said. If other residents still need assistance, they can call the Red Cross at 215-405-8800.

But whom will the city call for help with the multibillion-dollar cost of replacing all those old water mains?

Butkovitz said state and federal governments needed to step up and help fund more infrastructure improvements to cash-strapped cities like his.

"Ideally, we would rip everything out and replace it," he said, "if there was the financing source."