Massive San Francisco sinkhole forms after crews fix water main break in 74-year-old pipes

A water main break in San Francisco flooded buildings and created a massive sinkhole earlier this week in the middle of a bustling intersection.

Videos shared on social media showed water and debris gushing into the street where the break had occurred just before midnight on Sunday at Fillmore and Green streets in the California city's trendy Cow Hollow neighborhood. Crews with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission responded to the location and worked through the night to stabilize and repair the 16-inch cast-iron water main, which agency Press Secretary Joseph Sweiss said was installed in 1949.

The area was quickly flooded with water and debris, and SFGate and other local media reported that the deluge soon inundated businesses and other buildings. The break also disrupted the service of a nearby 8-inch water main, with customers in the surrounding area reportedly experiencing intermittent water service and temporary service interruptions, Sweiss said.

By Monday afternoon, a sinkhole had opened up in the middle of the intersection near Union Street, forcing streets to close and the public bus system to reroute.

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San Francisco's aging water pipes leads to more than 100 breaks annually

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission operates and maintains 1,200 miles of water pipelines, also called water mains, across Northern California. About 20% of San Francisco’s water pipes are around 100 years old and made of cast iron, according to the commission.

Though the agency has an active program to replace aging and vulnerable water mains, officials say it still experiences an average of 100 to 200 water main breaks a year.

Water main repaired as crews next look to sinkhole

It wasn't until after 9:30 p.m. Monday that crews had completed repairs to both the 16-inch and 8-inch water main breaks.

Work was temporarily halted Monday afternoon when crews with the Pacific Gas and Electric Company arrived at the scene to  to isolate a gas main inside the work area and ensure its integrity, Sweiss said.

After the repairs were completed, crews remained in the area cleaning up debris in the streets as they prepared to turn their attention to the sinkhole. Officials were not able to provide an estimate Tuesday morning for how long those emergency repairs are expected to take.

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Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected].