Motorists urged to avoid Financial District today during repairs
By Michael Naughton, Globe Correspondent, and Andrew Ryan, Globe Staff
Motorists are being urged to avoid the Financial District today because Congress Street will be reduced to one lane as work crews repair a water main break that knocked out natural gas services to some 400 customers, which included scores of restaurants and bars.
Gas was reconnected this morning to some businesses and residents in the North End, and service to the neighborhood should be completely restored by the end of the day, said Jackie Barry, a spokeswoman for National Grid.
Crews have divided the Financial District into five sections that are being isolated so water can be removed from the pipes. The bulk of customers in the neighborhood should have gas service back sometime today, Barry said. The hope is that all customers will be back online by Tuesday morning, Barry said.
"We are doing everything we possibly can to minimize the impact on traffic and restore service to our customers as quickly as possible," Barry said.
Nearly two dozen National Grid trucks were scattered throughout the Financial District overseeing pump trucks that collected more than 35,000 gallons of water from an area that covers 30 streets and includes 13 miles of gas lines. The break early Saturday poured into the pipes, rupturing them and causing problems for businesses and residents for most of the weekend.
Water continues to cause problems in isolated sections of the Financial District, and crews are working to remedy the problem with 12 specialized drip trucks, some of which can suck up to 2,000 gallons of liquid out of the pipes.
“It is critical to remove as much water as possible from the system in order to achieve the correct pressure levels to be able to reintroduce gas,” said William Akley, senior vice president of Gas Operations for National Grid, in a statement. “If there is too much water in the system when gas is introduced, this could cause further delays, and that’s the last thing we, or our customers, want.”
Even after service is restored, the water may continue to cause problems in the gas system for some time, Akley said. The flood may have also damaged some customers’ gas-fired equipment. [Call National Grid at 1-800-732-3400 with questions.]
On Sunday, Carolyn Carty Sapontzis of New Jersey left Boston with an unsatisfied craving for Joe's clam chowder. The stove in Brian Dacey's North End apartment did not work. And the Horan brothers, Bud and Dan, sacrificed showers.
"It'll be a good grunge day," Dan Horan said while walking his dog in front of the Marriott Long Wharf with his brother Sunday. Horan was staying at the Oakwood Apartments on India Street, only a few blocks from where the main broke at Devonshire and Washington streets. Part of Devonshire Street remained blocked off as crews worked to finish repairs. Mud, sand, and rocks still coated some of the street.
The break, which occurred about 3 a.m. Saturday, also flooded streets in the Financial District and the Blue Line platform at the State Street subway station. It did not affect subway service.
For Carty Sapontzis, the repairs were coming too late. She was visiting Boston with her husband and two children and was in search of a meal at Joe's American Bar and Grill on the waterfront when she suddenly halted after seeing a sign on the door that read in part "we will remain closed until further notice." Carty Sapontzis had eaten Joe's chowder on a previous visit to Boston and was looking forward to having another bowl.
"I'm definitely disappointed because I wanted to get some good chowder," she said, "and tonight we're on our way back to New Jersey."
While Sapontzis and her family headed toward Faneuil Hall in search of a replacement chowder, Dacey looked for a hot drink. The North End resident's gas service was cut off, rendering his stove useless.
"It's just making due without cooking and having to go to Starbucks for coffee and tea," he said while walking his dog at Christopher Columbus Park. "For us it's not a big hardship, just more of an inconvenience."
At Faneuil Hall, restaurants and the food court were not affected and remained open during the weekend. Nate Wing, a manager at Cheers at Faneuil Hall, said the restaurant was busier than usual Saturday because many other surrounding restaurants had no hot water and were forced to close.
Like Joe's, the Hard Rock Cafe near Faneuil Hall was closed Saturday and Sunday because there was no gas to heat water to wash dishes or for employees to wash their hands. The restaurant's gift shop remained open.
"As a company we're just not going to take a chance," said Mark Frisicano, manager of the restaurant. "We'll be in here every day until it comes on. When it does, we'll open as soon as we can."
While restaurants eagerly wait to reopen for business, Brain Dallas awaits a hot shower.
Dallas, 25, a Philadelphia native who has lived at the Oakwood Apartments for the past month while on business in Boston, chose a cold shower over no shower.
"It was rough," he said. "I haven't had to take a cold shower like that in a long time. It's pretty hard to shave with cold water, too."
Despite the icy shower, Dallas said he wasn't angry.
"These things happen. What can you do?" he said.
Megan Woolhouse of the Globe staff contributed to this report.
