A valve on a water pipeline supplying Sonoma Valley ruptured at 11:40 a.m. Wednesday in Santa Rosa during a routine upgrade of the aqueduct by the Sonoma County Water Agency.
According to a release by Ann DuBay, with the Sonoma County Water Agency, onsite crews immediately responded to the 2-inch hole in the 24-inch aqueduct and the rupture was stopped at approximately 1 p.m.
An estimated 150 gallons per minute of water – or about 16,500 gallons – were released during the rupture, which occurred near the intersection of Melita Drive and Los Alamos Road in Santa Rosa. There was no interruption of service to water agency customers. The pipeline will be fully repaired by approximately 5:30 p.m. Traffic was not interrupted during the rupture or repair.
Water from the rupture flowed into Santa Rosa Creek. A water agency biologist is onsite assessing potential impacts to fish, wildlife and habitat.
The water agency is working to upgrade its aging water supply infrastructure and protect it against disasters, such as earthquakes, by implementing its Local Hazard Mitigation Plan. As a part of this plan, the water agency has installed new isolation valves and is upgrading and replacing air valves within its more than 90 miles of underground water supply pipeline system.
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