Water Mains Break As Bitter Cold Grips Tri-State Area
ENGLEWOOD, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- The bitter cold that has sent the Tri-State area into a deep freeze is taking its toll on water mains across the region.
A six-inch cast iron water main running under South Dean Street in Englewood was no match for the frigid temperatures.
The 90-year-old pipe snapped just north of Route 4 around 9 p.m. Thursday, snarling traffic and turning Christian Klouda's car into an ice cube.
"It got covered in ice in over an inch thick," he said. "I couldn't believe it. It was icicles on my car."
Businesses in the area experienced a slow morning as a result of the water main break.
"It's cold and it doesn't help that there's a water main issue out there, it's creating a little bit of an ice rink out in front of the store," said David Branch of Town Audi. "It's just part of winter, we deal with it."
Similar scenes played out Friday morning in Newark and Jersey City in New Jersey and Bensonhurst in Brooklyn, where water mains also snapped.
An employee with United Water responding to the water main break in Englewood predicted his crew will be working non-stop into the spring thaw repairing pipes.