LIVE: Usage restrictions in place after large water main break | Some areas under boil-water advisory | Motorists rescued from flood

Restrictions on outdoor water usage city-wide and a boil-water advisory in some neighbourhoods are in effect after a significant water main break in northwest Calgary on Tuesday night.

Residents are being asked to reduce their indoor water usage as well.

The news came hours after the breach disrupted services to hundreds of homes and businesses while leaving some motorists stranded in a flood on 16th Avenue N.W. near Sarcee Trail.

The road remained closed Wednesday morning, with vehicles still abandoned at the scene. City workers were also observed working at the site, where the flood has been drained to reveal buckled pavement in the aftermath of the water main break.

The broken pipe is likely related to the Bearspaw South feeder main, the city said late Tuesday, a major artery in Calgary’s drinking water system and the same pipe that burst catastrophically in June 2024.

Officials are expected to provide a media briefing about the situation sometime Wednesday morning.

Here’s what you need to know.

Calgarians asked to cut water consumption after pipe break as restrictions imposed on outdoor use

Calgarians are being told to curtail their outdoor water use after a large pipe break in northwest Calgary on Tuesday night near 16th Avenue and Sarcee Trail N.W.

“The City has enacted its Municipal Emergency Plan and Stage 4 Water Restrictions for outdoor water such as rinks, snow-making or other large outdoor water usage,” the City of Calgary said in a statement issued overnight.

“Indoor facilities such as pools, rinks and recreation facilities are advised to implement their water reduction plans.”

Meanwhile, people are being asked to keep their showers short, flush toilets only when needed, and operate dishwashers and laundry machines for full loads only.

“As part of our efforts to manage water supply during this critical period, we need everyone to take simple but impactful steps to reduce indoor water use,” the city said. “These voluntary actions will help share water currently available.”

Indoor facilities such as pools, rinks and recreation facilities are also advised to implement their water reduction plans.

Boil-water advisory in Parkdale, Montgomery and Point McKay

Those living in some areas immediately downstream of Tuesday night’s water main break are being told to boil their water before drinking or using it.

The advisory from Alberta Health Services applies to parts of Parkdale, Montgomery and Point McKay, the City of Calgary said in a news release.

Tap water should be boiled for one minute before such uses as drinking, brushing teeth, cleaning raw foods, preparing infant formula or juices, and making ice.

Water used for bathing or for laundering of clothing does not need to be boiled, the city notes.

The advisory remains in effect until further notice.

A water main break near 16th Avenue and Sarcee Trail in Bowness was strong enough to tear pavement apart, one witness told Postmedia shortly after the incident in which firefighters rescued multiple motorists trapped by the fast-rising water.

Firefighter had to rescue 13 people from their vehicles, Mayor Jeromy Farkas said on social media.

Bowness resident Sawyer Colbourne, who posted one of the first videos, said the incident occurred around 7:45 p.m. when she was driving along 16th Avenue, with plans to grab takeout from the McDonald’s in Montgomery.

“I had just finished dropping off keys at my friend’s house … and right after we got under the train bridge that runs over top, I saw this car swerve and hit the car next to it,” she said. “But there was lots of water everywhere and I thought, OK, that’s weird.

“All of a sudden, I heard, it was almost like a boom or a giant crack and the pavement literally exploded underneath the car in the video, to the point where it lifted it up and almost knocked it over.”

Read more.

— Scott Strasser and Bill Kaufmann

Shades of June 2024 Bearspaw South feeder main disaster

Tuesday night’s water main break took place not far from the site of another large breach in Calgary’s primary water distribution pipe in June 2024. The map above shows some of where repair work took place at the time, plus plans for future twinning of the critical Bearspaw South feeder main. The design, construction timelines and budget for the project have yet to be determined.

Other planned works include upgrades to the Glenmore Water Treatment Plant, the construction of a third plant adjacent to the existing Bearspaw facility, and two new feeder mains serving north and south Calgary.

In a radio interview Wednesday morning, Mayor Jeromy Farkas referenced those upcoming projects as the long-term fix to ensuring better redundancy for the Bearspaw south feeder main.

“There is a complete replacement required,” he told CBC’s The Eyeopener. “We need to move beyond just the patchwork. We will do the work to get the pipe back into service, but the overall fix is to construct a brand new line that will prevent this from happening again in the future.

“And a greater audit as well, in terms of not just the physical pipes in the ground, but as I mentioned, all across the city, we need to be looking at future redundancies. We need to be asking questions about why 60 per cent of all Calder’s water goes through just this specific (line). And it also comes down to the culture, the performance management, the actual governance around this, as compared to other major water utilities across Canada.”

Earlier this year, Postmedia took a deep dive into the June 2024 feeder main disaster. Our reporter spoke with people who live near the site of the pipe break, along with experts who specialize in the design and construction complex water distribution systems about what went wrong and what led up to the incident.

Read more.

Water main was deemed stabilized following emergency repairs

The pipe that transports 60 per cent of Calgary’s treated water was stabilized following repairs in summer and fall 2024, and monitoring has revealed the water feeder main was in good condition following its catastrophic failure on June 5 that year, said Calgary’s director of capital priorities and investment Francois Bouchart to city council in November 2024.

Meanwhile, a report released in December 2024 found road de-icing in Calgary is “highly likely” to blame for the elevated levels of chloride in the soil that contributed to the Bearspaw south feeder main rupture, according to city officials and an engineering consultant.

During a media briefing on the first anniversary of the water main break, officials said the city had since enhanced its emergency response plan, bolstered its parts inventory and improved its water pipeline monitoring techniques. A piece of pipe had to be shipped to Calgary from San Diego to enable the initial repair.

In addition to pre-existing acoustic monitoring technology, General Manager of Infrastructure Services Michael Thompson said the city installed a fibre optic monitoring system throughout the entire pre-stressed concrete portion of the Bearspaw feeder main to ensure the line can be monitored continuously.

— Scott Strasser