Water Flow In Pipe

Northbound US 98 Lanes in Lakeland Reopened

LAKELAND | The northbound lanes on U.S. 98 between Combee Road and Edgewood Drive are open, the Florida Department of Transportation said today.

Crews completed rebuilding the roadway around 3 a.m.

The blockage was the result of an underground pipe exploding near Combee Road about 2:30 a.m. Monday, leaving a 20-foot depression in the roadway that stretched across several northbound lanes. Thousands of gallons of water gushed from the pipe.

By mid-morning Monday, city crews had stopped the flow of water and had begun repair work.

Officials could not determine what caused the piping to rupture.

LAKELAND | Problems with underground water lines compounded traffic woes along U.S. 98 in Lakeland and Bartow on Tuesday evening, but officials anticipated both repairs would be finished and the roads back open by Wednesday morning's commute.

Crews worked late Tuesday afternoon to seal a broken pipe that Monday closed the highway at Combee Road in Lakeland.

Late Tuesday afternoon, Bartow's commuter traffic was reduced to one lane after crews ran into problems while installing an underground water line.

Russ Martin with Bartow's public works department said crews were installing a new water line about 12 feet beneath U.S. 98 just south of Old Bartow/Eagle Lake Road. Lubricant used in that operation pushed up through a void in the ground, creating a foot-high bubble in the pavement that stretched nearly 3 feet across. The water line project is unrelated to the ongoing road construction in that area.

Police closed two lanes of U.S. 98 about 4:30 p.m., forcing drivers to use the left-turn lane, while road construction crews scraped away two lanes of pavement to repair the damage.

Officials with the state Department of Transportation said the area will be patched for now, and repaved as part of the ongoing construction along U.S. 98 from Bartow north to Lakeland.

In Lakeland, an underground pipe exploded near Combee Road about 2:30 a.m. Monday, leaving a 20-foot depression in the roadway that stretched across several northbound lanes. Thousands of gallons of water gushed from the pipe.

By mid-morning, city crews had stopped the flow of water and had begun repair work.

Northbound lanes were closed, so traffic was diverted west to Commerce Point (formerly A-Z Parkway) and back to U.S. 98. The detour remained in effect through Tuesday evening.

Officials could not determine what caused the piping to rupture.

And the story continues...

After laying the concrete at both the dam and turbine site we were once again extraordinarily lucky to avoid rain overnight. While waiting for the concrete to dry we focused on the electrical components and continued with the pipe layout. Along the way, we ran into many Costa Rican critters. The circuit board was filled with ants that multiplied as we continued to work with the wiring system. It was one of our slower days, as we couldn't finalize the piping system until the shipment of our valve for the top of the dam arrived, and the mounting of the electrical system was delayed due to faulty expanders. After two rigorous days of work behind us, and two more ahead, it was perfect timing for the team to take a brief breather. Together we went into the local town, Dominical, and enjoyed an evening of delicious Costa Rican cuisine. On Day Four the whole team donned their "Harvey Mudd College: The Most Amazing College You've Never Heard Of" T-shirts, knowing that it would be action packed (and full of photo opportunities!). With the 7am opening of the hardware store we received the crucial valve for the top of the dam that we immediately put in place. We were finally able to finalize and permanently cement in the pipe layout we had been planning for days. Brandyn and Alice worked on drilling clamps into the rock at the upper piping section to secure the pipes, while Lisbeth, Abby, Jinhwa and Professor Hightower continued to work on the electrical system.  At lunch came a much needed break, but also the dreaded rain we had been avoiding for the past four days. Although it only lasted for less than an hour, our already treacherous path up to the dam site was turned into a slick slope with minimal footing. Carrying 6 meter PVC pipes was suddenly much harder, but the team worked together to cement and secure the pipes all the way down to the generator site on flat ground. Without securing the final pipe to the turbine, tests were run to confirm that the pipe and dam system were successful and carried a strong water flow down to the last pipe. Jinhwa, Abby and Professor Hightower mounted the inverter and connected it to both the generator and circuit break. At 5pm we stopped for the day, with only the last pipe to connect and a few electrical details to finalize. Friday, June 10th, was the team's last day of work for this June visit.

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