Water Line Break In Miami Beach May Affect Afternoon Rush Hour

MIAMI BEACH (CBS4)- Crews are working to repair a water line break in Miami Beach that left multiple streets at an intersection flooded temporarily. But will the repairs be underway before Wednesday afternoon's rush hour traffic?

City officials said a 16-inch water line cracked in the area of 63rd Street and La Gorce Drive in Miami Beach Tuesday at approximately 10:30 p.m. The break damaged a Florida Department of Transportation storm line, a City Official said Wednesday morning to CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald.

"Fortunately it was a water line and not a water main," said Nannette Rodriguez, city spokeswoman. "If it had been a main, we would have had a loss of service, and probably a lot of damage."

As it stands, no customers lost water service, though police began rerouting traffic Tuesday evening in a two-block radius of the line break, to keep vehicles away from street flooding.

Vehicle traffic had not been badly affected through Wednesday morning, Rodriguez said, "but it could be affected more this afternoon."

"We were able to quickly close shut-off valves last night that prevented the flooding from expanding further," Rodriguez said. "But getting to the right lines and right area down there for repair has gotten a little complicated. So it's taking longer. We've called in a contractor with some heavy equipment to help us speed it up."

Rodriguez said they anticipate repairs will be underway through Friday.