So far the rupture has resulted in the loss of around 60 per cent of Griffith’s potable water.

The pipe which burst around 3am on Monday, sent tidal waves of water into a nearby park and storm water canal at the end of Binguie Street.

Council’s utilities director Graham Gordon said the 300 megalitre main water line was running for between three and four hours before being discovered by a council employee at around 6.30am.    

Mr Gordon said most of the water flowing into the storm water canal will end up in the Barren Box Wetlands.

“We usually get notified about burst mains quickly but this one being in the park and near a stormwater drain, went unnoticed until one of our council workers noticed it,” Mr Gordon said.

After discovering the broken main Mr Gordon said council employees shut the the valves from the reservoir to the pipe at around 8am this morning.  

However with several kilometers of piping being filled after the valve was shut, water has continued to flow into the storm-water drain for hours afterward.

With council’s water treatment plant currently running full-bore, Mr Gordon said it will take until tomorrow morning for the nine, 14 and 30 megalitre potable reservoirs on Scenic Hill to be returned to full capacity.

“After peak hour (this afternoon) we will have a reduction in water pressure but after people start sleeping the reservoirs will fill back up,” Mr Gordon said.

Mr Gordon said residents may experience a reduction in water pressure over the next few hours with the higher elevated and outlying areas of North Griffith and Hanwood to be the most affected.

However thanks to the intertwined network, the burst pipe will not result in any shortages of water to buildings in Griffith. 

“There are a number of factors that can cause a water main to break such as the age of the material an old main can have stress fractures occur,” Mr Gordon said.

“The main itself is over 50 years old and is cast iron and cement lined.”

In an effort to help conserve water council has announced that Griffith City Park’s splash pad will be turned off on Monday, returning to operation for Christmas Day.

Council is advising residents to be conservative with water use to help allow the reservoirs to refill during peak hour.

Residents are being asked to minimize any external water use such as watering gardens or hosing down pavements.

***

While you're with us, did you know that you can now receive updates straight to your inbox every Monday at 6am from The Area News?

To make sure you're up to date with all the Griffith and MIA news you can sign up here.