Saskatoon water main breaks reach 5-year high

New numbers from city hall might not come as a surprise to anyone who has recently been stuck in traffic because of construction.

Or those who’ve had their water shut off after temperatures plummeted.

On Thursday, the city released its stats on water main breaks so far this year.

“The breaks are more than we’ve seen in the last five years,” said Russ Munro, the city’s director of water and waste, Thursday.

In 2017, city crews dealt with 268 broken water mains. That compares to 183 for all of 2016.

Munro noted the repairs have been spread across the city, which is a good indicator the breaks are weather-related.

“There can be an increase of water main breaks at this time of year, when temperatures fluctuate above and below zero,” he explained. “Frost can cause the ground to shift and this slight movement can make a pipe, new or old, crack.”

On Nov, 7, a water main break along 25th Street closed the entire road for two days as crews repaired a leaking pipe.