Burst water main floods Mt Wellington street, access to Sylvia Park disrupted

Motorists were told to stay away from an entrance to one of Auckland’s largest shopping centres after a water main burst, rupturing the road and flooding vehicle lanes.

Watercare said it was alerted to a mains burst on Carbine Rd in Mt Wellington close to Sylvia Park at 11.17am.

A crew arrived at 12.15pm to “isolate the burst and begin repairs”.

“As a result of the incident, about 50 properties experienced low pressure or no water.”

The cause of the burst was attributed to a third party, Watercare said.

“We have now restored pressure to the water supply by shutting down valves to isolate the affected area, allowing the rest of the water main to build pressure.

“There are no properties connected to the affected area and repairs to the water main are now under way.”

Police said they were notified of the burst main at 11.13am.

“At this stage Carbine Rd, between Clemow Drive and Te Ahoterangi Rise, has been affected.”

A burst water pipe has caused damage to Carbine Rd in Mt Wellington near Sylvia Park mall in Auckland. Photo / Michael Craig

Pictures show the seal surface on two lanes ruptured into a pipe-shaped mound and water rushing out of cracks on to the street.

A burst water pipe has ruptured the road and caused traffic delays at Carbine Rd in Mt Wellington near Sylvia Park mall in Auckland. Photo / Nichola Barnden

Emergency workers were at the scene cordoning off sections of the flooded road while cars cautiously travelled over the disintegrated road surface.

A burst water pipe has caused damage on Carbine Rd in Mt Wellington near Sylvia Park mall in Auckland. Photo / Michael Craig

A burst water pipe has ruptured the road and caused traffic delays. Photo / Nichola Barnden

Police were directing traffic on the road, but advised motorists to avoid the area, which included the entry to Sylvia Park Shopping Centre, until it had been cleared.

A burst water pipe is slowing traffic near Carbine Rd in Mt Wellington. Photo / Google Maps

A Kiwi Property spokesperson said Sylvia Park experienced “short-term disruption” due to a “significant water leak” and road flooding nearby.

“While some of our services were temporarily impacted as Watercare worked to address the issue, all services are now back up and running and access to the Sylvia Park shopping centre via the Carbine Rd entrance has been restored.”

Auckland Transport said delays lasted two hours between 11.20am and 1.45pm.

The 323 bus route from Ōtahuhu to Panmure had minor delays while there was surface flooding on the road, they said.

Traffic was at a near-standstill across a 400m section of Carbine Rd.

It’s the second episode to affect Auckland roads in the past two days after a sinkhole formed in St Marys Bay yesterday.