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A wide swath of the District stretching across downtown was without running water this morning due to a broken valve on a 48-inch water main at 6th and R streets NW. Water was restored just before 11 a.m.
Reports of water outages came in from as far west as 23rd and M streets NW, and as far east as 12th Street and Massachusetts Avenue NW. Residents around Dupont Circle also reported low or no water pressure. At the Washington City Paper office building, at 14th and I streets NW, the outage left frustrated workers at neighboring offices scrambling to find a working restroom.
According to DC Water spokesman John Lisle, the broken valve was discovered while a team was conducting a valve “shut test” as part of the preparation for a capital improvement project in the area. As a result, DC Water had to take more of the water line out of service than anticipated. The situation was exacerbated by a reservoir at Foxhall that’s out of service for repairs, says Lisle.
@dcwater @aaronwiener Dupont Circle – no water.
— ldavisjohn (@ldavisjohn) February 11, 2015
@dcwater @aaronwiener on 12th and Mass. No water.
— Karine Aigner (@KarineAigner) February 11, 2015
@dcwater @aaronwiener On 17th and T Street. Really low pressure here.
— Travis Hare (@TheTravisHare) February 11, 2015
Image via DC Water