New water main break impacts half of community in Dixmoor, Illinois
A new water main break was impacting more than half of the community in the south Chicago suburb of Dixmoor Sunday afternoon.
In a statement, Dixmoor Village President Fitzgerald Roberts said an 8-inch water main broke on 139th Street between Dixie Highway and Thornton Road.
The water main is a major line for delivery in Dixmoor, the village said.
Crews were working on the break Sunday afternoon.
This comes only three days after another water main break in Dixmoor flooded roads and forced school closures. On Thursday morning, a water main ruptured at 146th Street and Seeley Avenue.
The main was repaired by Thursday afternoon.
Dixmoor has suffered from problems with its water infrastructure for years.
The serious water issues in Dixmoor were in the headlines as far back as 2021, after multiple main breaks resulted in boil orders, schools shutting down, and unreliable water pressure.
In September 2024, the village celebrated the completion of a $2 million project to install a new and larger water main in the village. But as Village President Fitzgerald Roberts explained at the time that the new main, funded by an expensive federal lifeline, was just an "artery," and the village still had to replace the "veins."
The $2 million price tag was just a drop in the bucket.
"We're probably looking at anywhere from about $40 to $50 million to kind of get it going a little bit more," Roberts said at the time.
Two years ago, there was even a water main break in the same location as the Thursday break.