Highway 99 in South Sacramento has re-opened after being shut down for hours this morning due to a water main break.
For about four hours, northbound 99 was also closed near 12th Avenue, but that direction of the highway into Sacramento re-opened at about 6:45 a.m.
It took another hour for water to be pumped from southbound lanes of the highway. The southbound lanes opened at about 7:45 a.m.
The closure was caused when a 12-inch pipe burst along nearby Franklin Boulevard sending water streaming across Highway 99 near 12th Avenue at 2:30 a.m.
Eventually, northbound and southbound lanes between 12th Avenue and Fruitridge Road had to be closed due to flooding. Traffic backed up behind pooled water on the highway and a detour around the watery mess was established on surface streets.
California Highway Patrol officer Rich Wetzel said that the pipe burst at Franklin and 13th Avenue, releasing about 200,000 gallons of water before city crews could shut off the flow at about 5:30 a.m.
Caltrans set about to pump water water as quickly as possible from Highway 99.
City Department of Utilities spokeswoman Jessica Hess said some residents reported low pressure and a few were without water. For those who are without service, crews worked to tap into water from another source to supply those homes.
Digging up the broken cast iron pipe and making a fix could take eight hours, Hess said.
Hess said various factors can cause a catastrophic break.
"It can be the age of the pipe, whether the pipe material is at the end of its useful life," she said. "We won't know until we get down there."
PHOTO CREDIT: Randy Pench, Sacramento Bee.
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