Sask. hockey player resting at home after neck slashed by skate
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'Considering the circumstances ... this is best-case scenario,' Cole Cusitar said.
As an intense storm hit the City of Humboldt for the second time in just a few weeks, Bob and Theresa Steven said they watched out their windows as the street in front of their home nearly turned into a river.
“We’ve been here 10 years, and we’ve never seen rain like this. There was a river running down the street here.”
By some accounts, at least four inches of rain fell in about an hour’s time. About two weeks ago, Humboldt’s Mayor declared a local state of emergency because of high rainfall totals flooding streets as well.
Theresa said the couple and their neighbors were lucky because they were up on a slight hill above the street, so no water seeped into their basement.
Their home is located less than half a block from where a sewer line burst after Tuesdays’ rainfall, creating a crater about 10 feet wide and at least 10 feet deep.
Scott Brockman, whose crew was in charge of digging out the crater – widening the pit to at least 20 feet to get at the section of old pipe – said they would likely be finished replacing the sewer main by day’s end…if the weather held up.
But another storm hit Humboldt once again Thursday, threatening that timeline. Brockman told 650 CKOM that although some basements came close to flooding with sewage, none to his knowledge were affected – but it was a close call.
“It’s old clay pipe,” he said.
Steven said there had been some issues with the same sewer line last summer, and the area was dug up. With the intense rainfall this time around, the old sewer line simply couldn’t handle the volume.
“It was unbelievable. The water was about in the middle of the road. It looked like maybe a foot or two. And it was just given’er. I’ve never seen anything like that, ever.”
Two square blocks were blocked off to traffic to allow for the repairs to continue, and some residents said their water had been shut off for nearly two days.
Brockman said the water would be turned back on for residents within 24 hours.