FOUNTAIN VALLEY : Punctured Line Floods Intersection

A work crew drilling holes to monitor gas station wells hit a waterline Tuesday, flooding the intersection of Garfield Avenue and Magnolia Street with thousands of gallons of water and forcing traffic to detour.

The 12-inch puncture sent water gushing at a rate of 1,500 gallons per minute until workers isolated the break two hours after the accident occurred and cut the flow, said Don Heinbuch, administrative services manager for Fountain Valley.

Water to the businesses along Magnolia was cut off during much of those two hours, he said. The city will keep the northbound lanes of Magnolia Street closed today while workers repair the main line, Heinbuch said.

The contractor, Alton Geo Science of Irvine, was coring for soil samples to check on possible soil contamination from a nearby gas station when the mishap occurred shortly after noon, Heinbuch said.

“An investigation is underway as to the exact cause of the break,” he said. “I’m not going to point a finger right now. The main concern is getting the street open as soon as possible.”

Workers turned off isolation valves half a mile apart in each direction from the intersection to stem the water flow, said city water Supt. John Hampton.

“In the event one isn’t looped, then we’ll take steps to give (customers) temporary service,” Hampton said. “No one will be out of water.”

The system works much like a sprinkler system in which one valve can be turned off while the rest of the system continues to deliver water to the residents and businesses, Heinbuch said.

Police blocked off the northbound lanes of Magnolia Street at Garfield Avenue and one westbound lane of Garfield Avenue.