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By JENSEN BIRD
Published: | Updated:
Streets in Detroit have been transformed into frozen lakes after freezing-cold weather caused the water mains to burst.
Residents woke up for their Tuesday morning commute to find their neighborhoods completely frozen over with impenetrable ice and slush.
City officials cited the weekend’s ‘historic’ storm as the reason for the breaks and icy conditions. It left millions of Americans in freezing conditions, without power and covered in snow and ice.
Detroit reached a low of -3F over the weekend, with even chillier temperatures to come throughout the week according to Accuweather.
The city’s aging infrastructure was unable to handle the severe cold, causing the pipes to break, reported Fox2.
One resident said the outlet the situation was ‘a total mess.’
‘A lot of snow and slush and just water,’ he said. ‘I can’t even back my car out.’
Some have been complaining about water main breaks since Monday, as emergency services responded to reports about vehicles stuck in the ice.
Detroit residents awoke to a thick layer of ice covering the city streets Tuesday morning
One resident described the scene as ‘a total mess’
Detroit Water and Sewage Director Gary Brown assured residents that crew were working quickly to resolve the issue
The sheets of ice reportedly affected several blocks in the city. Residents were asked to avoid the area.
Emergency services were seen pulling cars, including a police cruiser, out of the ice.
Some even took to driving over lawns to avoid the treacherous streets.
The Director of the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department, Gary Brown, said crews were already on their way to address the issue early Tuesday morning.
‘We’ve got a couple of dozen water breaks city-wide,’ he told WXYZ.
The crews must lower water levels on the affected streets before addressing the broken mains.
Trash cans and cars were seen lodged in the ice after the weekend’s record winter storm
City officials credited Detroit’s aging infrastructure and extremely low temperatures as the reason for the break
City sanitation crews can not address broken water mains until water levels have lowered
‘The main thing to do here is get the street clear, get the water to go down, and then we can start making the repair,’ Brown said.
The city prioritizes breaks that have left homes without water. Fortunately, Brown said, none have been reported.
He assured residents the issue would be quickly resolved.
Broken water mains occur when extreme temperatures cause water to freeze and expand within the pipes.
The Daily Mail contacted the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department for comment.
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