Peoria Heights Public Works crews didn’t exactly have a restful weekend as two significant water main breaks occupied them.
There was a major transmission main break on Monroe Avenue late Friday evening, July 7, with a tremendous amount of water loss.
“Every member of the Public Works Department except one who was on vacation came in in the middle of the night. If needed, he would have certainly come in,” said Heights Public Works Superintendent Chris Chandler.
At about 4 a.m. Saturday, the employees identified the faulty valves and shut them off, eliminating the problem for the time being. The valve trailer the Village Board purchased in 2022 “proved to be very useful for this purpose,” said Chandler.
Alas, the department’s work wasn’t done, as there was another main break about 500 feet north of the original one. Addressing that situation took the better part of Saturday, with crews finishing up about 4:30 p.m. The problems have now been rectified.
“A huge thank you goes out to all the members of the Public Works Department and the Peoria Heights Police Department for securing the area and providing public safety during this event,” said Chandler. In addition, “local JULIE locators and after-hours vendors made this repair possible for the citizens of Peoria Heights, and the Peoria Heights Public Works Department would like to extend a huge thank you to all of them.”