Crews hit water main while installing guard rail

ELKHART COUNTY, Ind. -- Crews installing a guard rail in front of Mary Daly Elementary in Elkhart struck a water main around 10 a.m. Wednesday.

After crews hit the water man, water flooded a nearby parking lot and the roadway.

“As we walked out, somebody said, ‘Oh I think you can see the water.’ And we saw the water gushing out of the hole over there and it ended up flooding both our parking lots,” said Keith Baker, Academic Dean at Mary Daly Elementary.

Within an hour, the water pressure was under control.

Bulldozers were brought in and blockades were made to redirect the water, and prevent it from damaging the school and homes nearby.

The city of Elkhart said that it's a good sign that the water was gushing out of the ground. If it wasn't, the contaminated water would have tainted the water supply in the area.

“As scary as that looks at times, it’s actually a good thing for the protection of the system. That means that there was not a chance for water to enter our system,” said Laura Akalo, Elkhart City Utilities Service Manager.