EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14\/CBS4) \u2014 A water main break along Pecos Street left dozens of customers without water service for hours and opened a sinkhole that will take weeks to repair, according to El Paso Water.<\/p>\n
El Paso Water said a 6-inch line broke this morning, impacting 26 customers. <\/p>\n
Neighbors said they woke up to water flowing in the middle of the street.<\/p>\n
Jasmine Ortega said the outage disrupted basic household tasks. \u201cI have backed up laundry. I have now dishes from this morning. We have to use the water dispensary that is parked outside my house so that we can wash our vegetables and do our everyday hand washing,\u201d Ortega said.<\/p>\n
The utility said it had a water tanker on site while service was restored.<\/p>\n
In a statement to KFOX14\/CBS4, El Paso Water said, “Crews are working to repair a main break on a 6-inch line on the 200 block of Pecos St. About 26 customers are impacted; we have a water tanker located at 237 Pecos for customers to use. NO BOIL WATER NOTICE is in place. Service is expected to be restored in the next 4-5 hours.” <\/p>\n
RECOMMENDED: El Paso Water plans aging pipe replacements after January break left thousands dry<\/a><\/p>\n El Paso Water said street repair and repaving due to the sinkhole will take a few weeks.<\/p>\n Some residents said they were frustrated by the disruption and raised concerns about repeated breaks in the area.<\/p>\n Destiny Willis said, \u201cYes, it’s very frustrating, and then time-consuming, I have to take time off of work to come and take care of the area, my house.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked by KFOX14\/CBS4 about how many times in the past year this area has experienced sinkholes caused by water main breaks, El Paso Water said that there have been two main breaks on the 200 block of Pecos in the past year, including today\u2019s break, with the last main break occurring in July 2025.<\/p>\n El Paso Water also said in a statement to KFOX14\/CBS4 that flooding in the area can happen when the pressure of the water breaks through the pavement. <\/p>\n “When a main break occurs, the pressure of the water breaks through the pavement and ends up on the streets, sometimes causing flood-like conditions temporarily,” EP Water said. <\/p>\n In an effort to notify residents when water breaks happen, El Paso Water said residents can check the utility’s outage map on their website and the Nextdoor app for updates, adding that they will soon roll out an app that includes an emergency notification system this summer. <\/p>\n “Depending on the size\/impact of the main break, we\u2019ll use our other social media platforms. This summer, EPWater will roll out an app that includes an emergency notification system,” EP Water said. <\/p>\n RECOMMENDED: Water main break exposes vulnerabilities in El Paso’s 1950s-era system design<\/a><\/p>\n