Philadelphia Chinatown businesses battle extreme heat, water outages after hydrant break

Water and steam are causing big problems on a block in Philadelphia's Chinatown. Dozens of neighbors and businesses say they have been without water after a hydrant broke Thursday night.

The break led to a steam problem that ramped up temperatures inside buildings.

Chinatown business owner Wai led us through the few inches of water on the basement floor of his Herbal Emporium on N. 9th Street in Chinatown. Downstairs, everything from the pipes to cinderblock walls, even the wooden railing, seethes with heat.

Wai said the temperature rose so high in his basement overnight that it burst his fire suppression system.

"Over 190 degrees downstairs," said Wai. "On first floor this morning, I walk in, it's 99 degrees."

All that heat actually starts with a fire hydrant. Officials with the Philadelphia Water Department say a broken hydrant Thursday night led to issues with the steam line that runs under 9th St. PGW officials also tell us some of their infrastructure was damaged in the incident.

One neighbor sent CBS News Philadelphia a video showing water bubbling on the sidewalk on Thursday night.

"Firemen just stopped at the top of the stairs; he's not going down there," said Manuel Wong. "It's just too hot."

Wong owns a building on street level, and says he didn't see any damage in his basement. But he also lives upstairs, making him one of 30 residents and businesses on the block that haven't had water since it was shut off for repairs.

We ran into Wong as he was coming back from a nearby store, a few jugs of water in hand.

"Oh man, toilet don't work!" said Wong with a laugh. "Gotta bring some water in."

It was a mixed day for businesses on the block. The Police and Fire Federal Credit Union at 9th and Arch had a sign on the door saying they were closed because of the water outage. Workers at a spa near 9th and Cherry also told me they were waiting on water to open.

Some, though, tried to ride it out, doors open and fans blowing to let the heat inside dissipate. Sijie Chen says it was a slow start to the day at Coco Hair Salon.

"There was two [customers] earlier; they wanted to wash their hair and get it cut. But we couldn't wash their hair, so they kind of canceled their appointment," said Chen.

On Friday, crews from the Water Department and PGW were on hand making repairs. PGW says two properties on the block are without natural gas as that process continues.

Also at the scene were teams from Vicinity Energy, which owns and operates the steam lines in the city. In a statement, a spokesperson for the company said, "We are aware of the incident and are working closely with key stakeholders. It is our understanding that earlier today, a bus struck a fire hydrant in the 100 block of N. 9th Street in Philadelphia. We remain committed to coordinating with the City of Philadelphia and other involved parties to support a collaborative resolution."

So far, no agency has given a timeline for when repairs will be complete.

And as that happens outside, Wai says he's just checking on the stock he stores downstairs.

"I just looked at them. It's OK," he said. "But on the floor, it's a lot of water."

And waiting for the cleanup ahead.

"I'm waiting for temperature to go back to normal, and I start to clean up."