Burst water main causes sinkhole on front verge in Geraldton

A Drummond Cove resident awoke last week to find a sinkhole had opened on her verge, with water gushing out and gouging a deep gully in her driveway.

It turned out to be caused by a burst water main in front of her house.

The resident said the same pipe had burst three houses away in March.

“I phoned the Water Corporation,” Les Evans said.

“They were really good.

“They came out within about an hour and a half and then turned all the waters off and they fenced off the area to make sure it was safe.”

Ms Evans said workers also dropped bottled water off for residents of the affected properties.

A Water Corporation spokeswoman confirmed the burst water main was made of asbestos cement.

“Asbestos cement pipes are commonly used by water utilities across Australia and pose no health risk to the water supply,” she said.

“We replaced about 50m of new water main along Hillview Terrace beyond the section that broke on Monday night.

“This will reduce the likelihood of future leaks and breaks to the water main.”

The spokeswoman said the Water Corporation would continue to work with Ms Evans to reinstate the landscaping on her property where required, and would repair the verges along the affected area as soon as possible.

“Leaks and breaks are not uncommon and occur in every water supply scheme around Australia,” she said.

“Water main renewals are reviewed regularly, with work prioritised based on a risk-based approach to pipe replacement.”

The Water Corporation apologised for the inconvenience and thanked the community for its patience while it installed the new section of water main.