Ice blocks intake at Pittsburgh Water treatment plant

Ice on the Allegheny River blocked the intake at Pittsburgh Water's treatment plant on Tuesday. 

In an update Tuesday afternoon, the city said a barge and tugboat came in and broke up the ice, which formed amid dangerously cold temperatures across western Pennsylvania. 

Authorities were worried the blockage would impact water pressure and service, especially in higher elevation neighborhoods. But service was uninterrupted and pumping capacity has returned to normal, the city said.

Pittsburgh Water said it's using several different tactics to mitigate the situation. On top of using a barge to break up ice and debris, they're also manually breaking it up from above and hosing ice to keep it away from the intake. 

Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O'Connor was at the site Tuesday morning. He said authorities have been coordinating with the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Emergency Management Agency in case the situation gets any worse. 

Desmond Carpenter with Allegheny River Trail Park said ice is common on the river this time of year. Usually the treatment plant turns off its pumps, allowing ice to flow by the intake. But this time, it wasn't so easily cleared, authorities said.

"(The ice) was pretty for one thing. I didn't expect it to cause any issues for the water company or anyone else," Carpenter said. 

Authorities haven't seen any damage, but they're continuing to monitor the intake gates and will decide if more maintenance is needed.