Water main break on Kenaston Boulevard costs man $20K in damages
Water main broke Sunday morning, City of Winnipeg spokesperson says
A Winnipeg man is facing thousands of dollars in flood damage caused by a water main break on Kenaston Boulevard in Winnipeg this week.
Alex Meron Gamili's home is one of three houses on his street affected by a broken main near a fire hydrant on Kenaston Boulevard near Corydon Avenue.
Meron Gamili said his house had the worst flooding.
"You can see all the walls, all the carpets, everything [is] wet," he said, stepping through the puddles on his basement floor
The flooding soaked everything from the drywall and carpet to clothing in storage, he said. It also broke his water heater, leaving the family without hot water.
When CBC visited his home Monday evening, water was pouring from a window, down his walls and onto the basement floor.
Meron Gamili estimates the cost of repairs to be around $20,000 and said he did not have home insurance.
In an email to CBC, a spokesperson for the city of Winnipeg said Meron Gamili and his neighbours can make claims for the damage through 311.
Meron Gamili said he's made multiple calls to 311 for help, and he's unhappy with the city's response.
"They [were] pretty rude, and just give us another number and another number and another reference number," he said.
A spokesperson for the City of Winnipeg confirmed a water main broke Sunday morning in the 300 block of Kenaston Boulevard.
"City crews attended the site and isolated the leak by 7 a.m. [Sunday]," the spokesperson wrote in an email.
Meron Gamili said crews were still working on the water main Monday evening and water continued to trickle into his basement as of Tuesday morning.
According to the city website, the city isn't liable for loss or damage from water main breaks unless the break was the result of city negligence.
On Tuesday evening, a city spokesperson said crews were still working to repair the leak and couldn't offer a timeline or cause. He said a water tank had been made available for residents without water.
The spokesperson said homeowners who want to submit a claim must show why they believe the city is responsible and provide documentation of their loss with photos, repair quotes, invoices or other supporting information.
With files from Marina von Stackleberg and Walther Bernal and Laura Glowacki