Contractors break old water line

SUSSEX BOROUGH — A contractor working on the Route 23 Realignment Project hit and broke an unknown abandoned water service line on Thursday, Jan. 22.

The contractor for the DOT (Department of Transportation) was digging a test pit to help the borough determine which water lines are associated with certain valves. The test pit also prepared for the next project, moving a water main.

As a result, water service was shut off to customers on: Walling Avenue, Brookside Avenue, and parts of Hamburg Avenue and Mill Street for about two hours.

Because the borough had previously found and replaced valves along Hamburg Avenue, the affected area was isolated, thus, significantly reducing the effect. Otherwise, it could have been another emergency event with water loss again as in November of last year.