JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — This morning, homeowners in the Hickory Manor subdivision woke up to widespread flooding in their neighborhood. They blamed it on damage to their water and sewer mains caused by contracted workers.
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Half of John Burke’s driveway is gone. He said workers were installing fiber optic cables when they accidentally plowed into the water main servicing the neighborhood.
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“The water pressure was so great that it eroded from the sand underneath my driveway and caused a 10-foot hole there and caused my trees and landscape to fall over on the sidewalk,” John Burke, Hickory Manor resident said.
The damage resulted in an eight-inch pipe rupturing which affected 75 customers.
JEA said in a news release that the break was “caused by a third-party telecommunications contractor.” It caused water outages for about 75 customers on the following streets:
- Willoughby Lane
- Willoughby Court
- Friargate Court
- Eaglesham Drive (west of Trowbridge Drive)
- Hickory Manor Drive (south of Hickory Creek Boulevard)
JEA is on scene assessing the damage. They told Action News Jax they expected water service back up and running at 5 p.m. on Wed., July 17.
READ: Traffic and businesses affected as JEA continues repair work on water main break in Mandarin
However, John Burke believes he is looking at extensive damage to his property.
“The whole area is impassible and has to be repaired so they’re going to have a crew out here for the next 24 hours. It won’t be fully repaired but it’ll be passible,’ Burke said.
Other residents told Action News Jax the contractors responsible for working in the neighborhood have been digging up people’s yards for weeks and this was the first time their work led to serious flooding. They said the workers were contracted with AT&T.
AT&T released the following statement:
As we work to bring high-speed fiber internet to more communities, our goal is to minimize impact on residents as much as possible. As soon as our contractor was aware of any damage, the local utility provider was notified and is currently on site to make repairs as quickly as possible. We apologize to residents for the inconvenience and will work with our contractor to resolve any impacts from their work.
— AT&T on water main break
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