Water Main Break Leads To Flooding At School In Vernon

VERNON, CT — A Sunday morning water main break disrupted service in Vernon and the residual effects caused extensive damage to an elementary school building in town.

Two sections of pipe exploded on Route 74, near Franklin Street and the Ray Seraphin Ford dealership's lower lot at about 5 a.m. Sunday, Connecticut, according Connecticut Water Co. spokesman Daniel Meaney. At 16 inches in diameter, it's one of Connecticut Water's largest pipes in the area, Meaney said. The pipe is 62 years old, he said.

"A lot of water flows through that pipe each day," he said.

Several areas with high elevation experienced a drop in pressure and homes in the immediate area lost pressure and had discolored water, he said.

By 4:40 p.m., service was restored, Meaney said.

"It's rare we find the exact cause," Meaney said. "The key was to get the crews there quickly to fix the break."

Crews were still available Monday to flush neighborhoods as needed, he said.

The road seemed to be the easy part. A residual surge blew out a pipe a few miles away at Center Road School and flooded the lower floor. That section of the building houses classrooms for several special needs student programs and specialty classes.

CRS Principal Jennifer Miller termed it a "valve rupture." In-person pre-school classes for Monday were canceled and teachers were checking in with families electronically. Specual needs programs were relocated upstairs and art and music teachers were able to use their regular classrooms, she said.

The top two floors housing students in kindergarten through Grade 5 were not affected, she said.

Vernon Superintendent of Schools Joseph Macary said Monday morning the damage "could have been worse, but there was still substantial damage to the first floor."

A restoration company was called in Sunday afternoon and was still at CRS Monday. Staff and faculty members came in early Monday to help clean up and move materials upstairs.

Macary said Vernon police noticed water pouring from the lower floor "early" Sunday.

"Thank God Vernon police," he said. "We were on it early because of the routine patrols at the school."

The lower floor at CRS is "mostly concrete," Macary said. "But with some sheetrock and instructional supplies, we have a problem."

Macary said school system officials have been working with Connecticut Water officials to calculate the costs of the damage and work out a reimbursement figure.

"We want to get the floor up and running by the end of the week and then re-asses what we have." Macary said. "We will definitely have to replace some of the walls."