KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Neighbors living near West Gregory Boulevard and Belleview Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri, spent most of Monday without water as crews from KC Water fixed a broken water main.
“We’ve gotten used to it,” said Merrick Henry, who lives on the street. “I think for us, we’ve been trying to have extra water in the house and not rely on the city. It’s changed our lifestyles a little, but it’s not terrible.”
Other neighbors spoke to 41 Action News off camera, expressing frustration and sharing videos of other water main breaks they’ve experienced over the past couple years.
There have been 10 water main breaks between 2011 and 2020, according to KC Water spokesperson. Monday’s break affected about 44 customers.
“I can only imagine what they are going through, but would like to see less of this, if anything,” Henry said.
The broken main was built in 1926 and, according to the water department spokesperson, is slated for redesign and construction in 2021.
“We are expediting the design on this segment of the main near West Gregory, which lead to an expedited construction," the spokesperson wrote in an email to 41 Action News. "We expect construction to begin during the summer of 2021."
KC Water said its goal is to replace 1% of water mains every year. There are more than 2,800 miles of water mains throughout the city.
The miles of main with the highest risk get replaced first, the spokesperson said.
