3 Cheers: Philadelphia Water Department Just Keeps Going Amid Harsh Weather Conditions
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Surrounded by snow and ice, cold air stinging their faces, Philadelphia Water Department crews just kept going.
"Just doing the work and doing what we got to do," Gary Woodard, a Philadelphia Water Department employee, said.
Eyewitness News met up with a crew Friday afternoon at 26th and Sterner in Northeast Philadelphia.
This week, these crews have been repairing up to 20 water main breaks a day, working at least 16-hour shifts.
"They haven't stopped; they're going to keep going. They feel some sort of pride in what they're doing," said John DiGiulio, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Water Department. "They know the work that they're doing is actually restoring an essential service to people in the city."
When the high temperature is 17, a few minutes outside and pretty much most people just want to go back indoors.
But these crews know this is the time they're most needed.
They may be just as cold as the rest of us, but they don't complain and they don't quit.
For that, the Philadelphia Water Department crews get three cheers.
