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Cold Snaps Tampa Pipes

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By ELLEN GEDALIUS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 9, 2008

Updated: 01/09/2008 12:14 am

TAMPA - Last week's short-lived freeze has had big consequences for the city's aging water pipes.

Fourteen pipes burst between Friday morning and Monday morning, about three times more than normal for a 72-hour period. Later Monday, a 10-inch main ruptured on Ashley Drive, forcing part of the downtown street to be closed while the leak was repaired.

So far, city workers have logged 115 hours of overtime fixing the pipes.

When temperatures dropped last week, water department officials expected pipes to break. As temperatures rebounded from slightly below freezing to the 70s last week, pipes contracted, then expanded and, in some cases, ruptured.

"The general feeling is that 14 is not out of line for a weather spike," said Eli Franco, distribution division manager of the water department.

When temperatures climb, pipes expand. Cold fronts cause pipes to contract. When the temperature goes up again, pipes expand and sometimes burst, Water Department Director Brad Baird said last week.

Fourteen pipe breaks is higher than normal for a three-day period, Franco said; he said two to five breaks within 72 hours is normal. Besides weather issues, other factors can cause a pipe to break, including contractors accidentally hitting one.

The breaks weren't confined to any one area of the city.

Most Tampa residents didn't feel the effects of the pipe breaks. No boil-water notices were issued, and the breaks were isolated quickly enough to prevent significant drops in water pressure.

In 2006, the city battled similar pipe breaks during November and December. As temperatures went up and down, pipes burst in nearly every corner of the city. One of the worst breaks was under the Hillsborough River, just south of Kennedy Boulevard. Traffic was snarled for days during Thanksgiving weekend.

This recent round of pipe breaks hasn't caused the same level of traffic congestion.

The city is trying to combat the problem, which is partly because of the city's aging infrastructure. About 15 percent of Tampa's water pipe system is beyond its useful life span, Baird said.

In December, the city issued $51 million in bonds to help pay for several water-related projects. About $45 million will be spent on replacing pipes, Baird said.

The bonds are backed by water and sewer revenue, said Bonnie Wise, the city's director of revenue and finance.

The city council last year approved Mayor Pam Iorio's plan to double water rates by 2012. Money from the rate increase will help back the bonds.

Reporter Ellen Gedalius can be reached at (813) 259-7679 or egedalius@tampatrib.com.

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