Staff member details repair of 140-foot storm drain on Asbury Way after sinkhole

A staff member described repairs on Asbury Way after a sinkhole formed around a storm-drain structure, saying crews replaced a corroded 140-foot run of 42-inch corrugated metal pipe (CMP).

The staff member said the damaged pipe required the team to bypass a live stream to work safely and to remove trees and homeowners' fences. "It's got a 140 ft of 42-in pipe that was badly damaged," the staff member said, adding that the pipe was CMP and corroded.

Crews also pursued property acquisitions and additional easements so work could proceed on private land. The staff member said the project team priced fence repairs and purchased materials before deploying a crew of roughly five to six people, including truck drivers hauling materials, workers laying pipe and an operator running excavation equipment.

"As we were performing the project, we noticed that the waterline had a buckle. So, we immediately contacted the water department and we cut out the bad piece of pipe and reinstalled a new one," the staff member said, describing a separate, concurrent water-line repair discovered during the project.

The staff member said it is common to find additional issues while conducting field repairs, which can prevent future problems. Homeowners were warned that construction would look disruptive during work; crews planned to regrade yards, resod grass and reinstall easement fences when the repairs were complete.

The staff member said the repairs were paid for through the storm-water fee and expressed pride that the project would leave the site "better than what we found it."