Petersburg water line repaired after residents contact 12 On Your Side

PETERSBURG, Va. (WWBT) — A Petersburg homeowner contacted 12 On Your Side after waiting months for the city to fix a broken water line on Mulberry Street.

Connie King said she called 12 On Your Side after months of standing water pooling in part of her yard.

“They’re going to keep telling me they coming out, but they’re waiting on the pipes to come. That’s been like 3 to 6 months, maybe longer now,” King said. “I just want them to come to fix the pipes. We should not have to live like this.”

Water spreading along the street

King said the water constantly runs down Mulberry Street.

She worries about drivers because of the water’s potential effect on the road.

“Sooner or later, the water is going to eat up to the street and then the road is going to cave in,” she said. “That’s dangerous for people that are driving through that area. And when they drive through, they drive real slow.”

Kings next-door neighbor said the problem began in May.

“This started in May of this year. We have been trying to get them to repair this. They came and they repaired that [leak],” the neighbor explained. “When they left in the evening time, [another] one started. It started like a little like a spring coming up.”

The constant flow of water has warped King’s next-door neighbor’s wooden mailbox.

“Well, it’s dry rotted because of the water. So we plan to move this [mailbox], but we cannot move it if the water is coming down here,” the neighbor said. “How will I get my mail?”

King said she and others have been calling Petersburg’s Department of Public Works since May. They were told the problem is an underground pipe that needs to be replaced and that DPW was still waiting on the new pipe to arrive.

“But that’s ridiculous. It’s kind of obnoxious and foolish because, you know, a pipe doesn’t come from Mars,” the neighbor said.

City of Petersburg responds

The 12 On Your Side investigators contacted the city of Petersburg on Wednesday, Aug. 26. After a follow-up a week later, the city said the waterline on Mulberry Street was repaired on Aug. 27.

“It is a 2″ line. The City plans to replace the 2” line with a 6” line,” a city spokesperson wrote. “Public Works has worked on that line several times.”

Aging infrastructure

A city spokesperson said Petersburg has aging infrastructure that is anywhere from 50 to 100 years old in some areas.

“The City has applied for and received over $125M in water/wastewater/stormwater grants in the past few years, and many upgrade projects are underway,” a spokesperson explained.

Work on Mulberry Street continues

When 12 On Your Side returned to Mulberry Street, King said work remained and the water is still running, but not as bad.

King said her neighbors are glad she called the city and 12 On Your Side.

“Everybody is praising me on this block saying, you’re the one who did this — you made the call,” she said. “Something is happening, they tore the street up. Something is happening, I’ll be glad when they finish the work.”