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NILES -- A water main break that went unnoticed for several days caused damage at the construction site of the waste water treatment plant, which is being upgraded, according to city officials.
The extent of the damage is still being assessed, but at least one concrete pad that held a transformer will have to be rebuilt and the soil in the area sunk about six inches, water and sewer Superintendent Andy Catanzarite said.
To prevent a possible explosion, the transformer was turned off and backup generators were used, he said.
Because the water flowed underground for some time before the break at the end of January was fixed, it caused "undermining," a type of underground soil erosion, Catanzarite said.
The cause of the break has not been determined. It may have happened because of pipe corrosion or during the construction process, Catanzarite said.
A structural engineer, who hasn't made a final report, told Catanzarite it doesn't appear the undermining affected the integrity of any of the plant's buildings. Another report will be issued by a geotechnical engineer, who will determine the overall impact to the subsurface area, Catanzarite said. A construction crew also will conduct exploratory digging.
The $35 million upgrades to the plant are being done by A.P. O'Horo in Youngstown. Construction has not been halted, Catanzarite said.
There is a $2 million contingency fund for the project, but it is uncertain if those funds will have to be used for the damage.
Councilman Steven Mientkiewicz, D-2nd Ward, asked then-Safety Service Director Jim DePasquale to furnish council with an internal report from the engineers about what exactly happened and how much it will cost to fix.
DePasquale said the contractor could be responsible for absorbing the cost of the damage, but it is too early to tell.
In order to watch spending from the water fund carefully -- it is the only city fund still in a deficit -- Mientkiewicz suggested council only give first reading instead of emergency passage today to a resolution that will allow the city to enter into a maintenance agreement for the upkeep of its water towers.