By Bailey Quinonez

Staff Writer

Today slow moving, muddy water runs through Northbranch Creek, following the premature failure of a 48-inch water main pipe that some estimates say cost local businesses hundreds of thousands of dollars. But problems for the county don't end there. Last week the Montgomery County Council called for a re-evaluation of its e-mail alert system after the system failed to send alerts regarding the water advisories.

"We would assume at this point it should have lasted 100 years and it lasted 38 years," said WSSC spokesperson, Lyn Riggins, of a pipe that broke last Sunday leaving more than a thousand restaurants and residents without water.

The 48-inch water pipe, by the Meadowside Nature Center near Lake Needwood and Muncaster Mill Road, will be repaired by the end of the week, said WSSC officials. The total cost for repairs of the pipe and restoration of the land are estimated at $100,000. The repairs alone are estimated at $50,000. "It appears as though the wire inside broke and caused the leaks, which weakened the pipe," said Riggins. She added that WSSC is taking the opportunity to assess the infrastructure in the area.

The failed pre-stressed concrete cylinder pipe (PCCP) failed after only 38 years. The estimated life expectancy for PCCP pipes is 100 years, said Riggins. Rockville's director of public works Craig Simoneau agreed with Riggins' comment that the pipe certainly did not last it's entire life expectancy but added that several counties have experienced the early failure of PCCP pipes. "We've seen breaks between 30 to 40 years or even 80 to 90 years," Simoneau said of Rockville's experience, calling the pipes unpredictable.

Rockville, unaffected by the WSSC water advisory warnings because of their separate water system, had 70 percent of its pipes installed before the mid-1970s, said Simoneau. PCCP pipes stopped being installed in the mid-1970s.

"We are replacing them now. Our pipes are the same age," said Stephen Gerwin, Howard County Bureau Chief and former WSSC employee. Rockville too is in the process of replacing the pipes. But Gerwin said the early failure of the WSSC 48-inch PCCP pipe could have happened to any county. "The day I heard this happened I was just glad it wasn't us. It's a nationwide problem," he said.

"There are devices in place now that, every time one of those wires breaks it sends a warning," said Gerwin of a new system used in Howard County that helps identify weakening pipes before they break.

The new pipe that will replace the failed PCCP pipe by the Meadowside Nature Center is cement lined ductile iron pipe, used since 1977. Out of WSSC's 5,500 miles of water pipeline in both Montgomery County and Prince George's County, approximately 2,300 miles use the new ductile iron pipe.

Water resumed to all Montgomery County residents by late Monday June 16. Following two water-tests WSSC cancelled the boil water advisory Wednesday, June 18. But several restaurants are still feeling the effects of having to shut down their businesses on Tuesday.

On Monday evening County Executive Isiah Leggett and County Health Officer Dr. Ulder Tillman ordered approximately 1,200 affected food service facilities to remain closed, starting Tuesday, until WSSC water test results returned. Restaurants were permitted to reopen on Wednesday subject to strict public health precautions.

The Outta the Way Café in Derwood is currently going through receipts to try and assess the financial damage done by last week's closing. The restaurant closed, as required by Montgomery County, on Tuesday and opened on Wednesday following a county announcement that restaurants could operate only if they followed strict rules that included using boiled or bottled water for food preparation and use.

However, Outta the Way Café owner Brian Marshall said, "A lot of people didn't know we were open," resulting in slow business on Wednesday. Marshall plans to submit an insurance claim for business interruption later this week but said he does not expect full reimbursement.

Other restaurants said they may consider taking the same route as Marshall for filing an insurance claim but for now have assessed the day's financial damage at approximately $1,600.

Roy's Place in Gaithersburg, a family-owned sandwich restaurant, was also affected on Tuesday. "On a Tuesday they make probably $1,500 to $2,000 but also we weren't paying workers," said Roy's Place manager Rick Brindley.

Brindley said they heard news of the water pipe early on Monday morning and resorted to using bottled soda and water, before the county required that all restaurants close on Tuesday. The restaurant closed Tuesday and opened Wednesday, following the same bottled water routine they used on Monday.

"We've never been shut down by the government. I had to call workers and tell them on Tuesday [that the restaurant was closed]. A couple of servers were expecting to make money," said Brindley.

Madras Palace, an Indian and vegetarian restaurant in Gaithersburg echoed the same experience as Marshall and Brindley. "We didn't open. Customers came but we didn't let anybody in," said Kanna Kuncha, owner of the 8-year-old restaurant. But unlike some that opened on Wednesday, Madras Palace remained closed. Kuncha estimates that $1,500 was lost each day and does not currently know how the restaurant will recover the money.

"I heard from several restaurants that they didn't know what to order [for the week's supplies] or when to order," said Virginia Mauk, executive director of the Olney Chamber of Commerce. "People that ordered food [prior to the water main break] had to throw stuff away." Mauk said that it is certain that businesses lost a significant amount of money but said she had no idea exactly how much.

Sachin Shah of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce would not comment on the financial impact that the water main break had on restaurants because they did not want to get involved and did not plan to provide a report on the financial impact.

"Our businesses really do know how to act," said Jimanne Italiano, spokesperson for the Bethesda Chamber of Commerce. Although the closure on Tuesday only affected businesses north of the beltway, Italiano said they received a few phone calls from worried business owners. However, most restaurants knew what to do because of experience with power outages, like the ones due to the thunderstorms a couple of weeks ago, she said.

The water main break last week not only highlighted a weakening infrastructure but also the failure of the Montgomery County e-mail alert system. Most residents said they learned of the water main break from local news sources but heard nothing from Montgomery County's e-mail notification system. The system is used to provide traffic, weather and emergency alerts to residents.

"It is unacceptable the way the county's electronic emergency alert system was not activated in a timely manner during the emergency," said Councilmember Phil Andrews (D-3). "The Public Safety Committee wants to hear from Executive Branch officials on what went wrong and what procedures can be put in place to ensure this does not happen again in future emergency situations."

The Montgomery County Council's Public Safety Committee will review the county's emergency notification procedures at its meeting on Thursday, June 26. The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. at the Council Office Building in Rockville.

Photo by Bill Wyckoff