Great Trinity Forest leak spills 3.6 million gallons of water, Environmental Commission questions Dallas Water Utilities’ response

By Dallas Documenters Originally appeared in Dallas Free Press Bonton representatives want to know why no one told them about a city water leak lasting 11 months and spilling more than 3.6 million gallons of water into their community. The Dallas& Environmental Commission& brought up these questions in an October meeting with Dallas Water Utilities. DWU Assistant Director Regina Stencel presented to the commission. Dallas Water Utilities took almost a year to fix the leak DWU began investigating the 30-inch pipeline leak in the floodplain area behind the& Rochester Levee& near William Blair Jr. Park in October 2022. Stencel says staff began efforts to minimize water loss, maintain water pressure and reconfigure the distribution system. Stencel said the nearby residents were switched to a different line so that residential water pressure would not be affected. After an internal leak assessment, repairs to the pipeline were completed 11 months later over Labor Day weekend 2023. A second leak about 50 feet away was also identified and repaired. Service to the pipeline was restored on Sept. 11, 2023. DWU estimates that 12,000 gallons leaked per day, totaling up to 3.6 million gallons. Both leaks were found to be joint failures and were...