The City of Pullman will begin making repairs to a broken water main starting next week.

City communications coordinator Sarah Phelan-Blamires said work will begin on the repairs July 24 and should last 3–4 weeks.

“The target date for completion is August 19, although it might not be exactly that day,” Phelan-Blamires said. “We’re aiming for things to be finished before school starts again.”

The water main is under the surface of the creek of the South Fork of the Palouse River, Phelan-Blamires said. A rock damaged the pipe April 9.

“A man was throwing rocks on the Kamiaken Street Bridge,” she said. “From what we understand, we believe the rupture was an accident.”

Apollo Inc of the Tri-Cities and Downing Diversified Directional Drilling of Kalama will be working on the repairs, Phelan-Blamires said. Much of the new water line will be built approximately 30 feet west and downstream of the location of the existing broken pipe.

To attempt to prevent any further ruptures of the water main, the new line will be placed six feet under the river bottom by boring through solid rock, she said. After the pipe is bored, an outer pipe sleeve will be pulled through to add a layer of protection between the rock and the line.

As a result of the construction, NE Olsen Street will be reduced to one-lane traffic on July 21 to allow for asphalt cutting in preparation for the installation process, Phelan-Blamires said. The process of asphalt cutting will begin on July 24, along with the rest of the construction.