January cold snap causes water main breaks in Saskatoon, Regina

The recent cold snap led to a lot of water main breaks in Saskatchewan’s two largest cities.

Temperatures during the cold snap dipped down as low as -40 C, which proved to be too much for some municipal water mains and caused them to burst.

The City of Saskatoon said there were 28 water main breaks recorded in the first three weeks of January – a big jump from the six breaks recorded over the same period in 2023 and much higher than the five-year average of 18 breaks through the first three weeks of the year.

In Regina, there have been 19 water main breaks so far in January. But according to Jay Overend, the City of Regina’s water operations manager, that’s not out of the ordinary.

“In January we’re seeing, on average, normal amounts (of breaks),” said Overend.

Overend noted that the water main breaks aren’t isolated to just one area, and are happening all through Regina.

With temperatures warming up again, Overend suggested it’s tough to predict if there will be more breaks in the coming weeks.

“There’s definitely potential for it, and I think we would need to see a week or two of warmer weather in order for the heat to thaw some of the frost that gets down to our water mains,” he explained.

“I don’t anticipate anything out of the norm at this time.”

A similar answer came from Saskatoon’s city hall.

“Since we are very early into the year, it’s hard to predict what the rest of 2024 has in store for water main breaks,” a statement from the city read.

“The extreme cold placed additional stress on the staff as well as the equipment used to complete the repairs.”

Overend added that water main breaks can lead to issues for residents and businesses throughout the city, as a break usually affects the water for an entire block. He said a break can also push water up to the surface.

“It could create an enormously icy structure on top of the road,” he said.

Overend asked anyone who sees a water main break to report it to the city so crews can be dispatched to make repairs.