Newark Nearly 100% After Massive Water Main Break: Officials

NEWARK, NJ — Nearly all of Newark’s water service has been restored after a massive main break in Belleville, authorities announced late Wednesday afternoon.

The main break took place on Tuesday morning near Branch Brook Park. According to Newark officials, it happened at Clinton and Mill Streets in Belleville. Officials in Belleville, Bloomfield and Newark issued a boil water advisory in the wake of the break. Read More: Water Main Break Wreaks Havoc In 3 Essex County Towns

The water leaks have been stopped and full water pressure should be at 100 percent by Wednesday evening, according to a statement from the office of Mayor Ras Baraka.

"The pipe that broke belongs to the City of Newark, therefore it is our responsibility to fix it," a city spokesperson told Patch.

The cause of the water main break has not been determined yet, the spokesperson added.

Meanwhile, the city’s boil water advisory remains in place until further notice. According to city officials:

“Residents are advised to continue boiling their water before using it, or use bottled water until notified that water quality is satisfactory. Customers within the impacted service area are instructed to bring tap water to a rolling boil for one minute and allow the tap water to cool before using, or use bottled water. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking; preparing foods; mixing baby formula, food, juices or drinks; washing vegetables and fruit; cooking; making ice; brushing teeth; and washing dishes. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water.”

“We have made outstanding progress on controlling this leak from the water main break from the beginning, and I thank our Water and Sewer Utilities team for their round-the-clock efforts to do so,” Baraka said.

“I also want to thank all of our residents for their patience, the mayors of our neighboring communities, and local businesses who donated bottled water for those impacted while we’ve worked to restore water service,” Baraka said.

The leak on the water main break has been isolated, the vehicle obstruction removed, and excavation has begun to uncover the water main, added Kareem Adeem, director of the Department of Water and Sewer Utilities.

“I want to thank our water and sewer utilities crews who have been working nonstop to seal this leak, our residents for their resilience, the Essex County and City of Newark OEM for their immediate and joint response, along with Passaic Valley Water Commission and the Belleville DPW,” Adeem said.

Newark official said that municipal workers went door-to-door with more than 8,400 cases of donated water on Tuesday, an effort that continued Wednesday.

“The city thanks the NJ Department of Homeland Security, Amerigroup, Audible, BJ’s, Emporium Supermarket, Extra Wholesalers, Fedway, Goya, Pepsi, Pueblo Supermarket, Seabra’s, ShopRite of Newark, Stop & Shop, Tropical Cheese, Twin City Supermarket, Water Exchange LLC, and the Dominican Parade for their donations,” Baraka’s office said.

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