Update: Water main break near Trios hospital forced roads to close

Residents and businesses in a south Kennewick neighborhood will be without water until Wednesday morning following a water main break.

Kennewick police Lt. Aaron Clem said the delay is to make sure no contaminants got into the water system before the city opens up the line again to customers.

Streets near Trios Southridge Hospital and Southridge High School in Kennewick were closed Monday night after several inches of water gushed down Southridge Boulevard, according to a Kennewick Police Department Facebook post.

The street was shutdown overnight without access between Hildebrand and West 36th Place.

The west side entrance and exits to Trios hospital were blocked but the hospital could be accessed off Plaza Way.

On Tuesday, Clem told the Tri-City Herald that the Kennewick Public Works Department made the repairs and reopened the streets.

Crews also collected water samples and have sent them off to a lab for testing to determine if the water system was contaminated in the process.

The results are expected by 10 a.m. Wednesday, at which point the city should be able to reopen the water main, he said.

This story was originally published January 25, 2021 at 6:16 PM.