Water main break in Oakland County prompts boil water advisory for Walled Lake, part of Novi

A water main break in Oakland County, Michigan, that happened early Saturday has spurred a boil water advisory for residents in Walled Lake and a portion of Novi, according to the Great Lakes Water Authority.

Officials said they discovered the break on a 48-inch water transmission main in the area of 14 Mile Road and Verona Street in Farmington Hills around 4:30 a.m.

The City of Novi said in a Facebook post that many of its residents were without water service and crews were "working tirelessly to pressurize the pump station and flush the system with the 'intention to get water'" to people without service sometime on Saturday night. According to the water authority, service was also interrupted for Walled Lake residents.

Water pressure returned to Walled Lake late Saturday, officials said, and water was "entering Novi's local system" late Sunday morning.

According to the water authority, residents in Wixom, Commerce Township, West Bloomfield Township and Farmington Hills may be dealing with reduced water pressure as a result of the incident.  

A power interruption at one of the organization's treatment centers created a "transient pressure wave," which is believed to have caused the break, according to the water authority. Officials said on Saturday afternoon that crews successfully isolated the break on Saturday afternoon.

"We have the crews that are out there at the break location. Since we have isolation, now we can begin to remove the water at that location and excavate in order to get down to the damaged area of pipe and assess the situation we have in order to continue our planning to affectuate, repair as quickly as possible," Cheryl Porter, chief operating officer of the Great Lakes Water Authority, said.

Kate Guzmán, an Oakland County health officer, detailed proper protocols for disinfecting water during a boil water advisory during a news conference on Saturday afternoon.  

"You must bring the water to a rolling boil for one minute, let it cool and then store the cooled water in a clean container with a cover," Guzmán said. The cover is important to prevent more contamination. Remember, freezing water is not an effective way to disinfect it. Residents are still able to wash your hands, bathe, shower as usual, as long as no water is swallowed."  

City officials in Novi have created a map to highlight which residents are under the boil water advisory.  

"Whenever a water system loses pressure for any significant length of time, bacteria contamination may occur, and these precautionary measures are recommended," Novi officials said in a news release.

There are two water trucks at Henry Ford Providence Novi Hospital on Grand River Avenue and a water truck at Walled Lake Municipal Complex on East West Maple Road to help impacted residents, the water authority said.

According to Novi officials, water is also available at their Department of Public Works facility on Lee BeGole Drive and staff from Village Oaks Elementary School, located at 23333 Willowbrook Dr., will be on-site filling containers until 4 p.m. Saturday. People visiting either location are asked to bring their own containers.

The Walled Lake Fire Department was handing out free water containers to people in need on Saturday.

A video posted on social media by the West Bloomfield Police Department on Saturday morning showed flooding near the area of the break.

Officials in Farmington Hills said their fire department rescued four people who were trapped in their vehicles due to flooding.

14 Mile Road between Drake and Farmington roads, and River Trail in Heritage Park in Farmington Hills were closed on Saturday evening due to the incident, along with several nearby businesses.

"Speaking directly to the people and businesses of Novi and Walled Lake, we know that this is not an acceptable situation and it is not the level of service that you expect or deserve," Great Lakes Water Authority CEO Suzanne R. Coffey said in a written statement. "To the people and businesses in the communities of Farmington Hills, Wixom, Commerce Township and West Bloomfield Township, we appreciate your patience as your pressures have been lower than expected and we thank your representatives and water system operators for their efforts and cooperation throughout the emergency."

Coffey added that the water authority will ask state and federal lawmakers for more funding to allow them to inspect water mains and "renew or replace them proactively to stem the tide of these repeated catastrophic pipe failures."

A water main break last September in Novi impacted homes, schools and businesses in the area. The water authority said on Wednesday that about 85% of the work to repair it had been completed.