Sunset Boulevard Water Main Break Disrupts West Hollywood

The bustling Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood remains closed due to a rupture in a water trunk line. This incident sent torrents of water down the roads starting Thursday morning.

Closures affect Sunset Boulevard from Horn Avenue to San Vincente Boulevard and N. Clark Street. Additionally, Larrabee Street at Santa Monica Boulevard and Palm Avenue at Santa Monica Boulevard are shut, as reported by the City of West Hollywood. Limited access is granted to residents at Shoreham Drive, Holloway Drive between Palm and Hancock Avenues, and San Vicente Boulevard at Cynthia Street.

The closure is expected to significantly affect businesses and residents in the area. Motorists are advised to avoid this part of West Hollywood while repair crews from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP) address the issue.

The break occurred on a riveted steel pipe from 1916, a key component of the water distribution network from reservoirs to smaller mainlines in Los Angeles. Replacing this section of the Sunset Trunk Line was initially scheduled for 2031. There are about 547 miles of trunk lines beneath the city, with 29% over 80 years old as of 2019, nearing their century mark. Funding challenges have hindered significant overhauls of these aging pipes.

“Once everything is shut down, we’ll pump the water out of the hole we have,” Anselmo Collins, DWP’s chief operating officer, stated. “We will make an assessment, which will determine how long repairs might take.”