Boil water advisory in effect for several areas of Calgary after major water main break

A irrigate briny break away in Calgary’s Bowness neighbourhood tues even led to significant flooding, requiring firefighters to rescue 13 people from seven cars stuck in the gushing water.

A boil water advisory has since been declared for parts of Parkdale, Montgomery and Point McKay communities as well.

Police and firefighters responded to the flooding and stranded vehicles along 16th Avenue N.W., the same street where a catastrophic break occurred in June 2024.

Trevor Sommerfeld, acting battalion chief with the Calgary Fire Department, said there was significant flooding beneath the CP rail bridge near 69th Street N.W.

Given the location of the flooding, the city said the break is likely related to the Bearspaw south feeder main, similar to the pipe that ruptured in northwest Calgary in June 2024.

The City of Calgary announced early Wednesday that parts of Parkdale, Montgomery and Point McKay communities are under an immediate boil water advisory until further notice. Residents are advised to boil water for at least one minute before drinking water, brushing their teeth, washing fruits and vegetables, making ice and preparing infant formulas.

"Water used for bathing or for laundering of clothing does not need to be boiled," the city said.

The city said it's unclear how long the advisory will last but noted that it's temporary and that crews are working around the clock.

The city added it’s too early to confirm the cause or extent of the damage. 

"The flooding underneath the bridge itself is quite heavy," Sommerfeld said. "It’s obstructing two of the four lanes on 16th Avenue, but we do have our CPS (Calgary Police Service) partners shutting down 16th Avenue in its entirety."

The westbound lanes of 16th Avenue were closed between Home Road and Sarcee Trail on Tuesday night, and police said they expected those closures to be in effect for several hours.

Ward 1 Coun. Kim Tyers said she felt "absolute shock" to hear another water main break happened again in her ward.

"The community of Bowness being affected again, just wondering about the extent of everything and the damage," Tyers said. "This is quite dire."

Tyers said she’ll update residents via social media as soon as she has more information to share.

In a Facebook post Tuesday, Mayor Jeromy Farkas said the break affected water service to 2,000 homes and 100 businesses.

"Please assist our emergency crews and first responders by avoiding any non-essential travel in the area surrounding 16th Ave NW and Sarcee Trail NW," said Farkas. "The seriousness is being investigated and we will provide more information as soon as possible."

Sommerfeld said the flooding does not initially appear to him to be as significant as what occurred after the water main break in 2024, but noted it is still a large volume of water.

No serious injuries have been reported, police said. Police are also asking people to avoid the area and wait for further updates from the city.

The city said it’s assessing the water pressure to determine how neighbouring communities are affected by the break, and that it’s opening its Emergency Operations Centre and activating its Municipal Emergency Plan, in response to the flooding.

The water main break in June 2024 dropped the city's water supply into a critical state, led to a state of local emergency and months of water restrictions. 

A report investigating what caused the 2024 break revealed several likely causes, including microcracks along the pipe and surrounding soil conditions, which contributed to the feeder main's deterioration.

Reporter

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