City crews busy with multiple water line breaks

The extreme heat is taking most of the blame for the water line breaks this summer.

The City of Tulsa says the same thing happens with extreme cold during the winter. But the city says 55 miles of the city’s water lines were installed in the 1920s, so age has got to be a factor. The rest of the city’s lines were put in before 1980.

Crews say it’s not the heat alone that breaks a line, but when the temperature underground fluctuates, the soil can quickly shift, causing the break.

The city is taking advantage of road construction to try to update as many water lines as possible.

“When we have a part of the street that’s open already with one of our funding packages, we look at those lines to see the age and to see if they can be fixed at the time we have the street open.” Michelle Allen with the City of Tulsa said.

Residents can report a waterline break by calling the 24-hour Water Emergency Line, 918-596-9488.