City crews spent the weekend working to repair a water main break on Gore Hill.

A 16-inch PVC water main broke late Oct. 17 in the southwest corner of the Town Pump at 3715 31st St. S.W.

The break was in the grass area between the truck stop parking lot and Tri Hill Frontage Road.

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Jake McKenna, city utilities manager, told The Electric that the PVC water main was installed in 2001 and this was the first break on the line, according to city records.

City utilities staff were able to isolate the Gore Hill water tower to keep water in the tank, which is a 500,000-gallon reservoir.

McKenna said city utilities and water treatment plant divisions “worked day and night to make the repairs to the water man, which included excavation through solid rock.”

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Once excavated, crews discovered that the main had split nearly the full lenght of the pipe, bell to bell, on the bottom of the pipe, McKenna said.

During the repairs, city staff notified the Montana Department of Environmental Quality of the break and with the agency’s guidance, issued a boil advisory to the four affected businesses.

McKenna said city staff hand delivered the noticies along with the frequently asked questions the city had received during last summer’s break that required a boil order in the Skyline/Riverview area.

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When water was restored and the flushing process completed, McKenna said city staff followed DEQ’s guidance and city water plant lab technicians took bacteriological samples at multiple locations in and around the impacted businesses and the Gore Hill water tower.

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After a 24-hour hold, the tests showed an absence of potential contaminates, DEQ was notified and the boil advisory was lifted.

At that point, McKenna said that the Gore Hill water tower was returned to service and continued normal operations.

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There were no further damages to public infrastructure and the repairs were absorbed in the current city budget, McKenna said.

The water main that broke it not under consideration for replacement.