A broken pipe in a downtown St. Louis apartment building caused flooding and prompted the evacuation of over 200 residents.
Source: KSDK/Edited by Argus St. Louis News Online
More than 200 residents were evacuated Tuesday after a broken pipe flooded the first three floors of an apartment building in downtown St. Louis. An assistant manager at the Mark Twain Building complex on North 9th Street said all 213 residents of the building were evacuated onto five warming busses.
Images by Laurie Skrivan/Firefighters assisting the residents onto Metro Busses.
Video from inside the building showed water flowing down one of the hallways, knee-high in some areas. The broken pipe caused significant water damage to the first three floors of the building, including multiple apartments. Building management is currently working to assess the extent of the damage and determine a plan for repairs.
The cause of the broken pipe is still being investigated, but it is believed to be due to the recent freezing temperatures in the area. No injuries have been reported. Residents were allowed back into the building later that evening to retrieve essential belongings, but all have been displaced from their homes until the repairs are completed.
The residents, many of whom are elderly, may be out of their apartments for a day or two.
About 90 of the residents are heading to Ameri-Corps St. Louis and Five Star Senior Center. It is unclear where the remaining residents will stay.
This video is from another apartment building near downtown, where residents had to be displaced due to a pipe bursting during extreme cold. Heritage House Senior Living…