New Jersey town’s boil water advisory due to water main break on day of earthquake finally lifted

RANDOLPH, N.J. — Officials on Monday lifted the boil water advisory in the township of Randolph, following last week’s earthquake that was blamed for causing a massive water main break.

CBS New York got the latest from local residents.

The earthquake was strange enough for residents around Pleasant Hill Road. The flood of water and worries that came after was just as unexpected.

John and Misty Nelson said they were doing yardwork when they felt the tremor, and an hour later the ground shook again.

“All of a sudden, I heard another loud boom. I thought it was an aftershock or something. But no, it was … the street kind of exploded. The water main broke, and it was like a geyser, just shooting right up into my neighbor’s house,” John Nelson said.

That geyser was the result of a 24-inch water main break, which sent a powerful stream of water into a nearby home that shattered windows, wrecked the siding, and flooded the lower levels.

“Because after it broke, it probably took, I would say, roughly two hours for them to shut the water off,” John Nelson said.

“That was the hard part, just watching the water hit their house and not stopping,” Misty Nelson said.

Officials said upwards of 2 million gallons of water flooded the neighborhood.

By Monday, the water main and the road were repaired.

Officials have been testing the water quality since early Sunday morning. The latest results are good, so the boil water advisory has been lifted.