"It was really bad:" Water main breaks, floods neighborhood on Milwaukee's upper east side



MILWAUKEE -- A water main break on Milwaukee's upper east side on Tuesday, September 19th swamped neighborhoods -- especially the area near Oakland and Linnwood.

Officials with the Milwaukee Department of Public Works said the main broke some time after noon at Oakwood and Kenwood. The main is a 16-inch main that was installed in 1936. It has only had one other break -- that was in the winter of 2012.

Water main break near Oakland and Linnwood (Credit: Paul B.)



The DPW closed off the intersection of Kenwood and Oakland to dig up the street, determine the cause and make the repairs. The water was shut off and no more water was leaking in street.

Customers on Kenwood between Oakland and Bartlett were impacted by the break. DPW officials said Tuesday night the problem was located and water had been restored to all customers.

Crews would work through the night to fix the issue.

Officials also alerted UW-Milwaukee about the break, but said they don’t think they will be impacted.





Water main break near Oakland and Linnwood



Alyssa Kubly was in class at UWM when it happened, and she raced to her apartment off Linnwood.

"Actually my friend, he messaged me and he was like 'you should probably come back home,'" Kubly said.

She did, and found a flooded basement.

"The water just kept rising and it was just really bad," Kubly said.

Justin Davis, who lives in that building, captured just how bad it was on video.

"Opened the door and we heard rushing water, and as we looked farther down, there was a couple of inches on the ground and it was coming through the wall," Davis said.

Water main break near Oakland and Linnwood



Water main break near Oakland and Linnwood



Water main break near Oakland and Linnwood



There were even some who tried to have a little fun.

"There was a lot of people hanging out on the sides of the road to watch. I think somebody had like, a wake board and was trying to have some fun I guess," Cody Zitek said.

Water main break near Oakland and Linnwood (Credit: Paul B.)



Water main break near Oakland and Linnwood (Credit: Paul B.)



Monitor FOX6 News and FOX6Now.com for updates on this developing story.