Flooded Basements Upset Capitol Hill Neighbors

Washington, DC (WUSA) -- The freezing temperatures are taking their toll on old water mains. One of the breaks has left some flooded basements in its wake. But neighbors near Lincoln Park on Capitol Hill say they first noticed the symptoms days before the water started rising in their homes.

Joanne Hatfield says it was Thursday when she called DC Water and Sewer Authority (WASA) about water coming up from a manhole near her home. Michael Biernoff says his wife Elizabeth called WASA about low water pressure on Wednesday or Thursday. Sunday morning, neighbors say they called WASA about water outside their homes in the 1100 Block of East Capitol Street, Southeast.

A WASA crew apparently unclogged a sewer around 10 a.m. Sunday that allowed the water to recede. The neighbors report about an hour after the crew left almost all of the basements in the block flooded. It was then that WASA told 9NEWS NOW that there was an apparent water main break nearby and that crews were now trying to locate the exact location of the break.

Residents upset with the response believe WASA should have figured this out and handled it before their basements flooded. A WASA spokesperson says they will investigate how the agency handled the earlier calls from the neighborhood. WASA says this was one of about 5 water main breaks in DC on Sunday.