Baldwin water main break affects Oceanside homes
New York American Water officials were on the scene of a water main break at the intersection of Winona Road and Anderson Street in Baldwin, on Mar. 6, that left homes in Oceanside without water service, or low water pressure for part of the day.
Homeowners Alan and Joyce Arias received a call from their neighbor at 2:30 a.m., saying they heard something in the front yard. Alan opened his door to find a lake in the road, reminiscent of Sandy.
Brian Bruce, Vice President of Operations for NYAW explained that we had an early frost, “then the snow acts as an insulator, and the frosts goes down 12 to 18 inches or more. With each frost the soil moves and that breaks our pipes,” he said. “This was a 20-inch pipe that was installed in the 1950’s,” he explained, “Not old compared to others in the system that are 100 years old or older.” NYAW will replace the pipe, the soil, repave the road, lay a new sidewalk and do the landscaping, Bruce said. They were talking to insurance companies about the Arias’s van, which was crushed when a tree fell on it due to the break.
Baldwin schools had to close due to low water pressure. State law mandates schools close if there are water pressure issues in the buildings.
