Orion Township official wary of fire risk as crews address water main break

An Orion Township, Michigan, official says he's vigilant about a fire breaking out while crews address a water main break that has strained water service to the Oakland County community.

According to the Great Lakes Water Authority, the break on its 42-inch water transmission main at River Woods Park in Auburn Hills, Michigan, happened around 1:30 a.m. The agency said Sunday night that crews had dug down to the damaged pipe and were hoping to have it replaced on Monday, though it added that residents in surrounding communities should "be prepared to be out of water" for at least two weeks. 

On Sunday, Orion Township officials were urging all residents in the community not to use water unless necessary in an effort to preserve the supply for "public health and safety needs" and said the likelihood of the water tower being depleted by the end of the day was high.

"We have a very limited supply of water, so the thought and the fear of an emergency where we're having to help other people or fight a fire would be catastrophic for our community," Orion Township Supervisor Chris Barnett told CBS News Detroit during an interview on Sunday.

Officials on Sunday were also asking nonessential businesses to close and said their water service would be shut off. Barnett said part of the reason for the request, in addition to conservation efforts, is due to fire suppression systems being compromised. He added that the community's fire and police departments are at "maximum staffing" to help respond to the incident.

"We need their focus to be solely on those items for the first 24 to 48 hours before we can start flipping switches and opening businesses again," he said. "That's where we are, asking our partners in the community to understand that, and they do. They don't like it. They are taking thousands and thousands of dollars in losses. We are breaking hearts. Our hearts are breaking for them, but they step up to the plate like they do whenever there's an issue here in our community."

Orion Township has agreements with fire departments in nearby communities that would help if a blaze were to break out before water service is fully restored, according to Barnett. 

"We have the benefit of having 42 lakes," he added. "It's not as simple or as quick to draft water from lakes to fight fires, but we can and have done that. So our teams are ready, but again, we're trying to limit the opportunities for them to have to be sprung into action."

Emergency personnel were busy on Sunday evacuating residents from at least five care facilities. Barnett said they aren't able to stay in their homes without running water or flushable toilets.

As of Sunday afternoon, the entirety of Orion Township is under a boil water advisory.