Wellington Water confirmed its team was dealing with a broken water pipe on Johnston Street. Photo: Supplied
Several businesses and residents in a busy central Wellington street are expected to be without water until late this evening after a water main burst earlier today.
A bar manager on the street says he is frustrated the pipe is now burst after calling the council about the issue weeks ago, and not hearing anything back.
One section of Johnston Street is closed off to traffic due to flooding, after the drinking water pipe burst this morning.
The burst water main caused the street to flood and sent a large plume of brown water out into the harbour.
Wellington Water confirmed its team was dealing with the pipe and said water would be back on by 9pm this evening.
Photo: Ellen O'Dwyer
The Featherston Bar general manager Geordie Craib said he called Wellington City Council about six weeks ago, when he noticed the pipe was leaking.
"There was a leak underneath the tarmac and it got worse over a few days, so a few of us rang the council, reported the leak, and nothing was done... I heard nothing."
Craib said he had not been contacted by Wellington Water or Wellington City Council today, and only saw the water would be coming back on later this evening after reading about it on a news website.
Photo: Ellen O'Dwyer
He said business was challenging enough without these pipe issues.
"The only positive I can put on this is that it's a quiet Monday night so it may not be as bad as it could have been, but at the end of
the day it's a disaster - business is tough enough as it is around town, without other things adding to the problem.
"If we can spend $2.3 million on toilets at the end of Courtenay Place, but we can't fix broken pipes I'm mortified at the moment - council's a shambles."
A burst water main in central Wellington has caused a street to flood and sent a large plume of brown out into the harbour. Photo: Supplied
A Wellington Water spokesperson confirmed they were first notified about the leak on Johnston Street on 30 April, but did not follow it up .
"At the time, this was a minor leak and categorised as a low-to-medium priority job based on our prioritisation framework."
The spokesperson said urgent leaks - categorised as those causing significant loss of water supply or posing a risk to public health - jump to the top of the list.
"This means that lower priority leaks like the initial leak on Johnston Street had to be deferred for when resources allow," the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also said work would have required traffic management, and to be carried out at night to minimise disruptions.
"The planning to repair this leak had already been underway.
"Late this morning, we received an urgent request regarding the leak's worsening condition. After following up to confirm the status of the leak, our crews were urgently dispatched to reassess the leak, and carry out the repair."
An eye-witness, who took photos of the leak at about midday, said water at that point was flowing into Customhouse Quay.
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