Two water-pipe breaks in two days in Midway District

The weekend before Christmas 2012 was not kind to water pipes (or traffic) in the Midway District. Two incidents of burst pipes and localized flooding occurred: one along Sports Arena Blvd on Saturday, December 22, and the other near the Midway Post Office on Midway Drive on Sunday.

Early Saturday, around 5:15 a.m., water started gushing along northbound Sports Arena Boulevard near the Interstate 8 east exit, where a 16-inch cast-iron water main broke. A sinkhole soon developed and police blocked traffic while city crews worked to repair it. Soon after daylight’s arrival, repairs had been made and all that was left of the break were traffic cones placed along the Sports Arena Boulevard sidewalk and a layer of mud and dirt coating the interstate entrance ramp.

The next morning, a "corroded, 18-inch, cast-iron water main broke just before 6 a.m. in the 2800 block of Midway Drive," according to NBC News San Diego. The Midway Post Office and a few other businesses were left without water service while work crews scurried to repair the break and clean the mess.