BOSTON (WHDH) - Crews responded in Mattapan Thursday after a water main break created a major mess along a local road.
Neighbors said the incident in the area of Lena Terrace happened just before 2 p.m. after a fire broke out at a nearby home.
When firefighters arrived and opened a hydrant, something broke, sending water everywhere.
“You couldn’t tell there was ground,” resident Tania Thompson told 7NEWS. “It just looked like a river.”
Takiajh King, who lives in the area, said she looked out her window and saw the street was flooded.
“I was like ‘Oh my god, there’s a river in the alley,” King said.
King said several surrounding houses had damage after Thursday’s flooding. The street in the spot where a neighbor’s car was parked also cracked, according to King.
The Boston Water and Sewer Commission didn’t have any information about what exactly happened in this incident, only saying there was some problem with the fire hydrant in the area.
That fact was not exactly a comfort for Thompson who said she had more than a foot of water in her garage and basement.
“We just kind of caught the brunt of it,” Thompson said.
Thompson said she has lived in her home near the site of this water main break for her entire life and said the flood did major damage. But with the power out and with their water shut off, Thompson said she and her family decided to wait outside for answers.
“Hard to really do much after that. There’s no way to stop it so you just kind of sit and wait,” Thompson said.
Crews remained on scene after 9 p.m. Thursday working to make repairs.
White their work continued, crews at one point earlier in the day brought a potable water station for people to use.
Speaking with reporters, a city official said authorities routinely flush hydrants, adding that the Boston Fire Department also does routine maintenance.
Authorities were still investigating the cause of this incident as of Thursday night.
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