A boil order was lifted for some residents on Saturday after a major water main broke Friday morning in Skokie.
The break closed schools, shut down shopping centers, flooded garages and vehicles and left more than 64,000 residents without tap water.
"It took quite a while to isolate that area to determine what they needed to repair," Skokie Fire Chief Jeff Hoeflich told NBC Chicago Saturday morning.
He explained the pipe that broke was a main transmission line for the village. A typical water line pipe can range anywhere from 6 inches to 12 inches in diameter, while the line that broke Friday at Emerson and East Prairie Road was 36 inches.
The boil order was set to remain in place until at least Sunday afternoon for Skokie residents, with public works crews working overnight into Saturday morning to locate the water main break. However, boil order instated for Northwest Evanston had been lifted as of 4:32 p.m.
“Thirty-six inches, you can imagine is a lot of water and a huge leak," Hoeflich said.
The Village has a back-up transmission line, but Hoeflich said they could not start feeding water to the line until they completely isolated the part that was leaking. Those efforts occurred overnight into Saturday morning.
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Crews isolated the pipe and the water system started refilling Saturday, providing water pressure relief for residents.
However, a boil order is still in effect.
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A water distribution event took place at Sketchbook Brewing Saturday morning.
"I got the call from the Village and we just decided yeah, we have the space, we have some people to help, so let’s do this," Sketchbook Brewing owner Cesar Marron said. "It’s scary how fragile the whole system is when something like this happens."
There will be another water bottle distribution event at Sketchbook Brewing Sunday morning starting at 7 a.m.
The water main break didn't only impact residents at their homes, with Endeavor Health canceling appointments for the second straight day.
Westfield Old Orchard Mall reopened Saturday, however restaurants there remained closed at lunchtime.
The Village posted these requirements for restaurants attempting to operate during the boil order.
According to the Village website, any residents seeking to report a claim for damages related to the water main break should email riskmgmt@skokie.org and include the following information:
- Your Name;
- Your Address;
- Your Phone number;
- Description of Damages related to the water main break;
- An estimate of the damages you have experienced (if you are able to provide one);
- Any other information which you believe to be relevant.
Residents should contact their insurance provider immediately. Village officials said they will coordinate with the insurance provider afterward to address liability issues if necessary.
The cause of the break is still not confirmed.
On Friday, Skokie Public Works Director Max Slankard said crews were working on locating a leak near Emerson and East Prairie Road. He said they left around 2 a.m. Friday in hopes of returning during daylight to find the leak.
Three hours later, the main transmission line at the intersection broke.
"We don’t know at this time whether there is a connection between those two events," Slankard said.
For updates from Village officials, click here.
