Georgia Ave. Delays Expected Thursday Morning After Water Main Break

Traffic delays are expected during rush hour Thursday morning after a huge water main break in downtown Silver Spring. 

Tens of thousands of gallons of water surged toward the Silver Spring Metro Station starting about 5 p.m. Wednesday, flooding streets and sidewalks and closing lanes of Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road. A 16-inch water main burst on the 8600 block of Georgia Avenue at Colesville Road, outside the Discovery Communications building, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission said. 

Crews had finally stopped the rush of water by 11 p.m., but some lanes of Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road will likely be closed Thursday morning as work continues, News4's Jackie Bensen reports.

Turning off the water was a big challenge, WSSC spokeswoman Lyn Riggins said.

"When you have a break like this with so much water, the valves that you're trying to get to are underwater," she said. 

The cause of the break in the 76-year-old water main was not immediately known. 

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