The excavation needed to fix the leaking pipe meant that traffic needed to be re-routed. Above, Baltimore City employees getting new traffic patterns going.

On Tuesday morning, UMBC Facilities Management was notified of a pipe leak that occurred just outside the driveway entrance to UMBC’s Naval ROTC Building.

The pipe, which transits water to the surrounding Baltimore County community, burst early Tuesday morning. The pipe spit out water that froze the branches of nearby evergreens.

According to an employee of Baltimore City, who was getting ready to start work at the site, pipe bursts are a common occurrence this time of year.  The current changing of weather can cause tension under the soil, causing pipes to simply break open and let whatever is in them leak out, the worker said.

The UMBC Facilities Management employee managing the incident said that the area where this event occurred took place is just outside UMBC property.  “It is a Baltimore County issue,” said the manager Bob Kelley.

Because the incident had to do with a water main problem, Baltimore City’s team was the one to respond to it.  “Anything that has to do with water pipes in Baltimore City or Baltimore County, Baltimore City takes care of,” said an employee who declined to give his identity.

The employee said that he will be conducting an excavation of the area surrounding the pipe. Later, other employees to patch up or fix the pipe leak.  Flags reading “BGE / BURIED GAS” were scattered throughout the area to ensure that no gas pipes are burst in the excavation process.

Water flow to the surrounding Baltimore County community will be cut off until the issue is resolved.  An employee told a concerned passer-by that water should be running again no later than 8 p.m. tonight.

The water supply cut-off is only affecting two small parts of campus. They are the Naval ROTC building and the Alumni Offices Building.  No employees seemed to be working at the Alumni building. One ROTC Staff member confirmed the water was not running in building as of late Tuesday morning.

UMBC’s Naval ROTC building lies on the edge of campus, along with the Alumni House, also affected by a water shortage on Tuesday.

A spokesperson for UMBC Facilities Management said that the issue would likely not be a major one.  However, the incident did create traffic patterns on Wilkens Avenue.

At midday Tuesday, a helicopter was hovering over and about the affected area for about 13 minutes.

Baltimore County employees should arrive within the following days to refill the excavated hole with soil.

The incident should not affect students’ commute Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning.

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