Success Story: City of Fort Lauderdale
Water Main RepairBackground
On July 17, 2019, a subcontractor working for the City of Ft. Lauderdale damaged a 42-inch water line at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport during an overnight repair.
While using heavy boring machinery, the crew accidentally struck the pipe, leaving a 6-inch hole. This particular line brought fresh but untreated water from city wells to water treatment facilities, where it is then processed and distributed to consumers.
Challenge
As a result of the line break, water had to be shut off to repair the pipe, leaving more than 220,000 Florida residents and businesses without water. The magnitude of the lack of water to businesses and homes caused an emergency situation.
The City of Ft. Lauderdale was under tremendous pressure to repair the pipe and restore water to the communities as quickly as possible. City officials tried to activate a by-pass line, but it failed, leaving the city stuck in a bad situation.
Due to EWSG’s efforts, water service was restored more than 24 hours ahead of schedule.
Solutions Delivered
The City of Fort Lauderdale had an existing contract with Envirowaste Services Group for point repairs, which had been in effect for more than five years. Around 3 AM the day of the incident, city officials made an emergency call to the Envirowaste team. Within two hours, Envirowaste was fully mobilized and on the scene.
The EWSG team quickly began work to repair the damage. City officials originally estimated it would be several days before the work could be completed. Having so many residents and businesses without water would have crippled much of the city and related revenue. The line was fabricated with a specialized material that had to be manufactured for the full repair, but using EWSG’s expertise, experience, and a little ingenuity, they were able to implement a reliable temporary repair that could hold until the replacement was ready. Due to EWSG’s efforts, water service was restored more than 24 hours ahead of schedule.
The City of Ft. Lauderdale leadership expressed gratitude and surprise on the ingenuity and speediness of the repair. EWSG continues to serve the City of Ft. Lauderdale as a trusted partner.