By Gloria Ogbonna
A major water main break in the south suburban village of Dixmoor has left more than half of the community without reliable water service on Sunday, according to local officials. The break, described as significant, is causing widespread disruption for residents and businesses across the area.
Village President Fitzgerald Roberts said the rupture occurred along 139th Street, between Dixie Highway and Thornton Road. The damaged pipe is an 8-inch water main that serves as one of the primary lines supplying water to the village. As a result, an estimated 800 to 1,000 residents have been affected by the outage.
This incident marks the sixth water main break in Dixmoor since Wednesday, raising growing concerns about the condition of the village’s aging water infrastructure.
Crews have been working to repair the latest break, but officials say the location of the pipe directly beneath active railroad tracks has made access and repairs especially challenging.
Residents report that water problems began as early as Saturday, with many experiencing extremely low water pressure. Some say water was barely trickling from their faucets before service was eventually shut off completely to allow crews to complete repairs safely.
As of 5 p.m. Sunday, village officials estimated that repairs could take an additional five to six hours. During the outage, crews are going door-to-door to distribute bottled water to residents who are without service.
The repeated water main failures have reignited frustration among residents, many of whom say they are exhausted by the ongoing disruptions.
Local leaders have long pointed to outdated infrastructure as the root cause of these recurring issues and continue to push for increased funding to modernize the village’s water system.
Similar water main problems in Dixmoor over the years have previously led to school closures and emergency repairs, highlighting what officials describe as a long-term infrastructure challenge rather than an isolated incident.
Authorities said no further details were immediately available as repair efforts continue.
This is a developing story, and updates will be provided as more information becomes available.
Sourcr ABC7
Original article
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