Mike Malloy isn’t sure what he’s going to do about the water damage to his repair shop caused by the water main that broke last Sunday a block from his store on Laidlaw Avenue.
“This is absolutely devastating,” said Malloy, surveying the mud which still lines the floor and parking lot of his shop, Laidlaw Auto Repair.
According to Rich Henning of United Water, Inc., the company that supplies water to Jersey City and Hoboken, a 48-inch water main on Jefferson Avenue between Central and Summit Avenues ruptured at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
“We estimate hundreds of thousands of gallons of water went into the street,” said Henning. No cause for the break has yet been determined, but Henning theorized the 80-year-old main broke from old age.
“It’s hard to make an educated guess,” said Henning, adding that the investigation into the break was continuing. “In a leak like that, most of the evidence gets washed away.”
One of the places that the evidence may have washed through was Malloy’s repair shop.
“We haven’t been able to do anything since Sunday,” said Malloy. “I did an oil change. That made $20.”
Malloy and his employees have spent most of the week scrapping four inches of mud off the floors and trying to salvage what they can from the shop’s storeroom. Many of the cars parked in Malloy’s lot for repair suffered water damage from the foot of water that gushed into Malloy’s establishment Sunday.
“The water came in like a river from across the block,” said Malloy, pointing to the flat, open lot between Laidlaw Avenue and the site of the broken main. “A neighbor called me about the water and it was like a river when I got here.”
Malloy added that he could barely cross in front of his shop without being pulled down by the water flow.
Among the property ruined by the water was Malloy’s newly installed state inspection machine.
“That cost me $83,000,” Malloy said. “I have five years left to pay on the machine and I don’t have flood insurance.”
Malloy, who has owned the auto repair shop since he returned from service in Vietnam 37 years ago, noted the damage inflicted on the vehicles in his lot.
“We’ve got heaters in the cars, drying them out,” Malloy explained. “We got a lot of the mud scraped up from the lot, but we still have to repair the damage.”
The fence between his lot and the neighboring residences on Beacon Avenue had been pulled up by the water. Behind that fence is a small apartment building owned by Girish Patel. Patel’s cousin, Jitu, saw the water from the apartment’s second floor as it approached Laidlaw Auto Repair and then headed for the basement. “The water forced the back door of the basement open,” Patel said. “There was nearly six feet of water in the basement. The water so strong it forced the basement’s front door open and came out on Beacon.”
Jitu and his cousin were concerned about possible contamination from the mud brought in by the flood. On Wednesday, a decontamination company was already cleaning out the basement.
Henning stated United Water crews had repaired the break by 3 p.m. and water service was returned to the area soon after.
“There was concern about sediment in the water from the water system,” said Henning. “We put out a water boiling advisement for Monday and Tuesday. People were to boil water for three minutes before using.”
Henning added that water was tested daily for bacterial contamination after the break. No bacterial presence has been found, Henning said.
In addition to the regular water damage, the Patel and his family lost a great deal of the costumes and equipment used in a Hindu wedding, which was stored in their basement.
“My cousin his having a wedding in a month and we won’t be able to use the material in the ceremony,” said Patel.
Patel said the approximate cost of the water damage to the apartment was $45,000 and he was unsure if insurance was going to cover the expenses.
People affected by the water main break can contact the Jersey City Office of Risk Management. According to Peter Soriero, risk manager for Jersey City, stated that while United Water Inc. manages the water system in Jersey City, the system itself is owned by the municipality.
“We’ve had about 20 people call to make a claim about the flooding so far,” said Soriero. “Before making a claim with the city, people should first file a claim with their insurance. Then they can fill out one of our claim forms.”
Anyone interested in obtaining a claim form should call (201) 547-5034 and ask for William Maur, the city’s claims adjustor.
Cecil Fernandez, a Central Avenue resident, also suffered from the main break last Sunday.
“We had two feet of water in the basement,” said Fernandez.
Fernandez, the leader of dance and jazz band, lost most of his musical equipment to the flood waters.
“I lost my sound system, amplifier and speakers,” said Fernandez. “The basement was finished, so we had to throw out the furniture and carpets. The basement is ruined.”
Like other victims of the water main break, Fernandez said he will clean up the damage and start to replace what he has lost.