Tulsa Crews Respond To Surge Of Water Line Breaks Due To Freeze

The deep freeze is causing big problems underground, leading to water line breaks all over Green Country.

In Tulsa on Jan. 16, there were more than a dozen water line breaks to be fixed, and crews expect more over the next few days.

The city said it has 11 crews working and stand-by contractors if needed.

Crews cannot seem to get a break from water line breaks.

From Tuesday morning near 4th and Elgin Downtown to the afternoon near Pine and Peoria, dozens of homes and businesses have been without water.

A break near Charles Page Boulevard and the Gilcrease Expressway forced Nature's Kiss, which grows cannabis for its dispensaries in Tulsa and Oklahoma City, to use its backup water supply.

"It's very important to, of course, water the plants, said Zach McIntosh of Nature’s Kiss. “We also do processing, so we require for water for that as well."

Josh Bilby with the city said some lines take a few hours to fix while others may take a day or two.

"Once they get the waterline exposed, then we begin the process of repairing it,” said Bilby. “Sometimes, it can be a quicker repair with a repair sleeve. Other times, we have to put in a piece of pipe, and that takes a little bit longer."

Bilby said downtown areas like 2nd and Detroit are harder because of their location, and some pipes are from the 1950s.

"As the water leaves their treatment plant, we have noticed that the colder water or the denser water as it reaches some of the older areas of town where we have older infrastructure, that's where we have most of our issues,” said Bilby.

Still, there is a process of digging and repairing while making sure crews stay safe in the weather.

"Some of the side streets are a little bit more difficult, so just give our crews time to make it out to get that addressed and get out there safely so that they can take care of any concerns you might have,” said Bilby.

To see a live list of water line breaks and how to report them, click here.