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Water, Power Restored To Society Hill Homes, Businesses Following Water Main Break

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Dozens of businesses and homes once again have water and power after a water main break at 5th and Lombard Streets in Society Hill Sunday night. 5th street in that area is also open again to traffic.

"This street basically burst open with brown water," resident Alex Adams said. "Alarms went off, the building's power on a couple of the floors went out and the emergency lights came on."

Just after 9 p.m. Sunday, the Philadelphia Water Department was alerted to a possible break at 5th and Lombard Streets in South Philadelphia. Officials confirmed they found a break on a 12-inch water main, but crews were able to stop the flow overnight.

"The people on the bottom floor had worse off, we are at least above ground," Adams said.

Even businesses were impacted and this is the second time in two months that the Mirror Construction Company had to pump water out of their basement.

"It looked like a mini swimming pool," Rob Hughes said. "We just put the bathroom down there, just getting things back to the way it was and now we have to do it all over again."

The Mirror Construction Company builds and leases commercial properties along South Street. The group says it'll take a few days for them to pump all the water from their basement.

"It's a good thing it happened now because once we have a tenant in here, they may have had all their stuff destroyed," Hughes said.

Meanwhile, the water department is still investigating what caused the break and says crews will be out all day until things are back up and running.

CBS3's Wakisha Bailey contributed to this report.

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