Coliban Water is assessing key water mains in Cohuna after a burst main in the town on late Monday (October 26) afternoon.
The burst was on a 225-millimetre water main in Sampson Street, near the intersection of King Edward Street, and caused low pressure or interrupted supply to about 750 homes and businesses in the area.
The main was built in 1958, and is one of a number in the town of a similar age.
Urban Services Manager Carl Oliver said the burst water main had not been a problem in the past, and a variety of issues could have led to the burst, including traffic, earth disturbance, or even the age of the main itself.
“Our crews replaced the damaged section, all the while trying to limit the impact on locals,” he said.
“The community was very patient with us while we worked as quickly as we could to make the repairs, and we thank them for that.”
Sections of the road damaged by the leak are due to be repaired today (Friday October 30).
Mr Oliver said a range of water mains had been replaced in Cohuna in recent years, including on Sampson Street.
“In 2019 we renewed 235 metres of water main in King George Street and 210 metres in Barrhead Street. In 2018 we renewed 580 metres of water mains at five different spots in Cohuna,” he said.
“We have an ongoing water mains renewal program to ensure we maintain and deliver services to the community.”
Mr Oliver said Coliban Water will continue to assess key Cohuna water mains as part of that program.
“We’ll look again at the main that burst on Monday, and others in Cohuna,” he said.
“We’ll look at other key mains to see whether they may need to be renewed in the future, as well as taking an even closer look at how we can limit interruptions to the Cohuna community if bursts do occur.
“The community is at the forefront of our mind when we do this.”
Sites are identified for replacement by analysing a range of criteria including criticality, risk to community, number of failures, number of supply interruptions, number of households and businesses impacted, and the assessed remaining useful life of the asset.
Leaks, faults and emergencies can be reported to us anytime on 1300 363 200 (1300 COLIBAN).