FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – An environmental contractor will begin initial disinfection and cleanup work Friday, a day after a sewer main break occurred at George English Park in Fort Lauderdale.
According to city officials, significant progress was made overnight removing discharge from Bayview Drive, between Sunrise Boulevard and Northeast 11th Street.
Officials said the contractor has completed excavation work in an area to the north of the damaged portion of the 42-inch pipe.
The sewer line that spans the city has ruptured in different areas in the past.
“We have crews out here right now removing the water from Bayview Drive," Fort Lauderdale spokesman Chaz Adams said Thursday. “Once that water is removed, they will start digging so that they can identify the exact area of the break and assess the damage to the pipe. Once they make that assessment, they will come up with the correct strategy in terms of how to best repair it and how to best address it.”
The city confirmed Friday that a tapping saddle had been installed on the northern section of the pipe.
The contractor will also excavate an area to the south of the break and conduct similar work on that portion of pipe and will begin assembling a bypass pipe, which when ready, will be connected to the two tapping saddles, city officials said.
Due to the sewer main break, a precautionary advisory for water-related recreational activities is in effect for the area from Northeast 26th Street to Las Olas Boulevard and from North Victoria Park Road to the Intracoastal Waterway.
The playground, tennis courts and basketball courts at George English Park remain open to the public.