Water main break will keep Ray Street closed until Friday

A 20-inch water main broke at 8 a.m. Friday under Ray Street, sending water running down the hill and turning onto Langley Street to flood all the way to Elsbree Street.

FALL RIVER — Pavement is buckled and broken. Through traffic is no longer possible on Ray Street because of the water main break Friday.

It will take most of the week to repair the damage, according to Terry Sullivan, the administrator of community utilities.

In the meantime, parents at the James Tansey Elementary School have been advised to change the way they travel when dropping of students.

A 20-inch water main broke at 8 a.m. Friday under Ray Street, sending water running down the hill and turning onto Langley Street to flood all the way to Elsbree Street.

Crews shut down neighborhood streets and began segregating the leak. Water department crews shut down 13 valves to stop the water flow. Then they dug the main and replaced the broken pipe.

Water was restored to all the customers at 9 p.m. Friday, Sullivan said.

Now comes the clean up.

“Due to the large amount of water from the break, the street was undermined,” Sullivan said. “There are visible dips.

“We’ll have to repave three and a half blocks.”

On Ray Street, the subsurface of the road was carried away by the water. That loose gravel is now spread down Langley Street.

Ray Street, from Spruce to Hemlock, is closed. Sullivan said. Traffic will be reduced to one lane on several local streets and police have posted signs prohibiting parking.

“Please avoid this area if possible,” Sullivan stated.

Engineers were expected to go to the street on Monday to determine the extent of the damage and come up with a repair plan, Sullivan said.

They hope to begin work on Wednesday or Thursday, though the heavy rains predicted for Monday night could delay that, Sullivan said.

“I’m hoping to get a schedule today,” he said.

The damage is north of the Ray Street entrance to the B.M.C. Durfee High School or the Spencer Borden Elementary School.

Chris Audette, the principal at the James Tansey Elementary School, put out a call to parents, advising them of the traffic changes. He declined comment on the matter.

Sullivan said it appears slightly more than three blocks will have to be repaved.

He should know early this week when the work will start and when it will be completed, Sullivan said.

Email Kevin P. O’Connor at koconnor@heraldnews.com.