Gallons of water pouring from hose on Detroit street for months

DETROIT (WJBK) - Thousands of gallons of water has been pouring onto a Detroit street.

The water has been spilling into the street for two months, while neighbors have noticed their water bills going up and water pressure going down.

Neighbors living there say they turned to us after calling the city and not getting anywhere. A hose constantly running coming out of manhole has been spewing out what appears to be clean water for months now.

"How long is that going to go on," said resident William Horner. "And how much effort is it going to be to fix that, and how much more waste and increase in water prices is that going to be."

Neighbors can't make sense of what work crews are trying to accomplish.

"How many swimming pools could this fill," Horner said.

The seemingly clean water is sending a small river down Hurlbut Street starting at Kercheval streaming almost all the way down to Jefferson. Neighbors first noticed it in mid-May.

"They took the hose, put it out," said resident Marrico Coleman. "They come out, then they look at it, and won't do anything about it. They just stand over the hole and they leave."

Ever since, the water pressure has been low, and the bills have gone up. For the first time, Coleman received a water bill for the neighboring lot he owns.

"They sent us a bill for a house that used to be here for $80 something and the house has been gone over 30 years or longer," Coleman said.

He first noticed there may be a problem underground months ago.

"I noticed a crack in the middle of the road last winter," he said. "There was a big block of ice."

The Detroit Water and Sewerage Department tells FOX 2 that the water is in fact clean, and it is being flushed from a water main.

When FOX 2 pressed for more on why this was necessary, we were redirected to another city employee who says whatever is happening on this corner, it is the problem of the Great Lakes Water Authority - despite what it says the barricade reading "City of Detroit Water and Sewerage."

"Would you please come out and fix it," Coleman said. "Please."

Whatever is going on, residents agree, they shouldn't be the ones to pay.

"The people should have their water bill refunded for two months for that increase," Horner said.

FOX 2 put in a request for more info from the Great Lakes Water Authority which released a statement through a spokesperson:

“The Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA) has been working in coordination with the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) to isolate and repair a leak on a 48 inch water main in the area. Due to the size of the main, and to ensure that no residents were disconnected from their water as the leak was addressed, the repair has taken some time to complete. As a comparison, a typical home service line is between three fourths of an inch to one inch, so these are incredibly large pieces of infrastructure.

Despite these challenges, our field services team were able to make the repair this week, and as a result the line is being flushed after disinfection, which is standard protocol to ensure the safety and quality of the drinking water. The flushing will continue until the next phase of the repair, which is sampling. The main will continue to be flushed until we can collect two samples that verify that the water meets all regulatory standards.

Any water seen prior to this week was most likely due to the leak that was addressed. Once flushing is complete, residents should no longer see water on the road.

GLWA is committed to the customers it serves, and the safety of its water. Maintaining our infrastructure and ensuring water of unquestionable quality can be a difficult job, but is necessary. We thank the residents of the area for their patience as we wrap up our work."