Susan Romphf was in an “absolute panic” when she saw water shooting out of an underground pipe at the construction site next to her Esquimalt home Monday morning.
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| Susan and Jack Romphf’s basement was under at least two feet of water after construction crews accidentally hit a water main outside their home. The damage is now being repaired. (Submitted) |
Romphf, who makes silk clutches and wallets, ran to her flooded basement and waded through two feet of water to save bundles of silk and other art supplies.
“When I opened the door … to our basement the water was already over the rise at the bottom of the stairs,” she said. “You know when they drain the fire hydrants? That’s exactly what it looked like. Just gushing out.”
A construction crew doing work for the Capital Regional District’s (CRD) new wastewater treatment facility had hit a water main outside Romphf’s home at the corner of Lyall and Lampson streets.
RELATED: Construction of sewage treament plant starting
In under an hour the water filled Romphf and her husband Jack’s front yard and flooded their basement.
Most of her silk was saved, but Romphf said they lost furniture, appliances and possibly more. Jack’s car – a Volkswagen Passat – was under at least a foot of water and might be written off by insurance.
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| Jack and Susan Romphf are grateful for insurance after a busted water main caused flooding to their property Monday morning. (Nina Grossman/Black Press) |
The water is out of the property now and a restoration team is already at work determining what can be salvaged, but Romphf said she is still in shock.
“It was the most helpless feeling in the world as I was pulling out my wire baskets and dragging them up the stairs, slogging through water in my shoes,” she said. “It will all be replaced and I’m trying to just let go of it because, it’s done. It happened.”
The couple said they were pleased by the quick action of the construction crew that immediately took responsibility for the break and shut off the main while they did repairs.
The CRD wastewater project will provide tertiary treatment for wastewater from Victoria, Esquimalt, Saanich, Oak Bay, View Royal, Langford, Colwood and the Esquimalt and Songhees Nations. It is expected to be complete by the end of 2020.
RELATED: Construction on track in Esquimalt for CRD wastewater treatment plant
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