DENVER — Firefighters in the Denver metro area are preparing for 911 calls related to pipes bursting. Once the weather starts to warm up after a big freeze homeowners run into problems.
Bitter cold in Denver will continue Thursday with the high for the day staying below zero. Thursday night will see more bitter cold readings.
Friday will bring temperatures up to the mid-teens with a quick warm up to around 50 degrees by Christmas Day.
"It's when the temperatures start to warm up enough that the pipes are thawing and people discover the water leaks then," said Eric Hurst, spokesperson for South Metro Fire Rescue.
Hurst is expecting Saturday will be busy for fire department.
"They are seeing it flooding and they are not sure where it is coming from, and they don't know where the water shut off valve is," he said.
One street became chaotic when Hurst said a family flooded the whole basement floor.
"When the firefighters got to the stairway in the kitchen and looked down in the basement, the water was already up almost to the first floor," he said.
To prevent a big mess like that, here are some suggestions from Denver Water:
- Learn the location of the home's water shut off valve. In most single family homes, the valve is in the basement or crawl space, on a wall facing the street.
- Open cabinet doors leading to exposed pipes (such as access doors for sinks).
- Keep attached garage doors shut.
- Crack a faucet farthest from the place where water enters the house
- Keep thermostat set above 65 degrees
If you think a pipe is frozen, don't wait. Denver Water said thaw it as soon as possible or call a plumber. You can point a hair dryer at the frozen area of the pipe. A blow torch is not an appropriate option.
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