City crews have to work ‘hot’ water leak

For the second time in two weeks, employees with the water department of the City of Lamesa found themselves having to work a leak on a main water line while the water still was fl owing. Dionicio Garza Jr. said the most recent leak was reported about 12 noon Sunday in the area of the old Oil Mill and Compress yard at Akron Avenue and South 6th Street.

The leaking six-inch main water line actually was not on the city’s water system,

Garza said, since it was part of the pipeline installed for the Oil Mill and Compress.

“We do not have any mapping information to show us where those lines are located,” Garza said, “but the leaking line was tied directly into two of the city’s 12-inch main water lines so we had to make the repairs.” Garza said workers were not able to isolate the broken pipe and shut off the water supply because there are no fl ow valves in that area. As a result, the city had to call in KW Sharp out of Lubbock to install Quik Valves on the line that was under pressure in order to isolate the leak, Garza said. “With two 12-inch lines feeding into a six-inch line there was a tremendous amount of water pressure at the leak,” Garza said, “and our crews had to work the repairs ‘hot’ while the water still was fl owing.”

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