MIAMI (WSVN) - Crews are working to repair a water main break in Miami’s Brickell neighborhood that shut down a major intersection during rush hour on Wednesday and continues to tie up traffic well into the following morning.
7SkyForce HD hovered above the scene as traffic came to a standstill at the corner of Southwest Eighth Street and Second Avenue, at around 6 p.m., Wednesday.
Hours later, 7News cameras captured the intersection looking more like a parking lot, as water gushed out onto the road.
“It’s horrible. It’s been two hours, almost three hours,” said driver Sandra Rivera.
Miami Dade officials issued a traffic advisory after, they said, a non-county contractor broke the water main.
The rupture led authorities to shut down Eighth Street from Second Avenue to South Miami Avenue.
Crews spent hours trying to shut off the water before working to repair the road.
The closure came during the height of rush hour, catching commuters in gridlock.
“It’s kind of been like a nightmare all night,” said driver Samantha Miolla.
Miolla, an Uber driver, said the closure came with costly consequences.
“Half a mile is like 20, 30 minutes, yeah, so I’m just pulled over until it calms down a little,” she said.
Just before 10 p.m., crews brought in heavy equipment to start digging up the road.
While crews continue to make repairs, Miolla said all she can do is sit tight, hope for the best and hope her wallet doesn’t take too big of a hit.
“Anytime I go to another part of town, everyone wants to come back to downtown, so I’m just waiting a little bit,” she said. “There’s nowhere for me to go, at all. I’m kind of stuck.”
Officials urge drivers to avoid the area and seek alternate routes.
It remains unknown how long the repairs will take crew members to fix.
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