AUSTIN, Texas — Austin Water crews were busy on Tuesday as the cold temperatures led to some pipes bursting.
According to Austin Water’s live outage map, crews worked on around 30 leak repairs, with at least six water outages throughout the day.
Austin Water Assistant Director of Operations Ayman Benyamin said the number of breaks are typical for this time of year, even with the inclement weather. At this time of year, he said soil can shift around, and that’s when breaks in pipes happen more often.
Benyamin said they have enough manpower to tackle them quickly, telling KVUE there were more than seven crews working on breaks at a time, with the ability to hire contractors if needed.
“We have them categorized in priorities,” he said. “In priority one, we have, now, one remaining out of the big three breaks we had during the [weather] events, but overall, [pipe] breaks are in the 20s right now, which is a typical four-hour working day,” he said.
Callie Slypher said when she got to work for her shift at Thom’s Market, crews were working on a pipe break right outside the store.
“They were working in the middle of the road and the entrance to the store was blocked off, so I assumed something was up,” she said. “I came here and made the morning coffee and, sure enough, no water.”
Slypher said a big part of their job includes making coffee and drinks for customers, so water is important to have.
“We only have so much water on the shelf to make coffee with, so hopefully it doesn’t last any longer than today, but yeah, if it goes on any longer I’ll have to think of other solutions,” Slypher said.
With another freeze coming Tuesday night, Benyamin said they’re not worried about breaks getting out of control.
“The worst of it has passed, and I think we already have enough staff to address anything that might arise,” he said.
Austin Water officials say they work around the clock to fix leaks and outages. They say if you drip your faucets, that can help water from freezing in your pipes and potentially causing problems.
If you’re experiencing a potential water leak, you can reach out to Austin Water through My ATX Water, by calling 311 or 512-972-1000.