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By CHRISTINA JEWETT
© St. Petersburg Times, published June 13, 2001
ST. PETERSBURG -- Attention, North Shore commuters: First Street south of 22nd Avenue N should be open later today.
Dirt and sand 14 feet below the road surface was seeping through a gap between wastewater pipes. As the dirt filtered into the pipeline, the road above began to sink. The pipes were scheduled to be sealed Tuesday. Road resurfacing was to be finished this afternoon.
"The road could cave in if we left it unattended," said Lane Longley, a manager for wastewater line maintenance.
Longley said a similar joint separation under the road at 34th Avenue NE east of Poplar Street will require city crews to replace about 500 feet of pipe. A date for that project has not been set.
Sewers began to snake a path below the city in 1894, though most were installed in the 1950s.
"Some that are very old have been replaced or updated at various times during rehabilitation and replacement projects," Longley said. "However, we do have older lines that were never attended to -- and now they're due. Some may continue to be good for years to come."