Kensington sinkhole caused by leaky pipe

    A leaky underground pipe in Kensington caused a dangerous sinkhole Monday. PWD cautions homeowners about soft ground.

    A woman driving in Kensington was injured Monday after her vehicle fell into a sinkhole that opened up on the 3400 block of Crystal Street.

    The Philadelphia Water Department’s Deputy Commissioner of Operations, Debra McCarty, says the sinkhole opened up after there was a leak in the homeowner’s water pipe.  That water washed away soil underground, creating a void that caused the ground to cave in.

    “There are parts of the city that are built on fill,” McCarty says.  “That fill is a lot lighter – it’s not clay-like, like my garden, and it will easily wash away whenever there’s a problem. I can’t really attribute problems, per se, to old pipes.  I mean, we have over 100-year-old water mains in the street and they’re in very good condition.”

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    McCarty encourages the public to report leaks if they become aware of them to help avoid something like this from happening again.

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