Water has been leaking out of a fire hydrant at 77th and Ward Parkway for two weeks, according to people living along the busy roadway, and it’s starting to cause multiple car accidents.
"Even if there is no ice anywhere else in Kansas City, there is ice on Ward Parkway,” said Christienne Gillespie who lives along Ward Parkway.
Gillespie says she has seen multiple accidents due to the slick conditions.
"Last Tuesday somebody kind of spun out and clipped someone else, ended up driving over our lawn and ending up in the neighbor’s driveway,” said Gillespie.
One of those cars belongs to Steven Miles of Leawood, who slid off the road crashing into a tree in the median.
"At first I didn’t know what had happened cause I didn’t see any ice or anything on the road and then it took a little, it took like five minutes for me to realize oh I really did hit some ice,” said Miles.
Miles says he does not know how much it will cost to fix his car, but says he does plan to contact the city because he feels they're responsible for the damage to his car.
The water department says they were made aware of the problem last Friday and the hydrant is leaking due to an underground water main break.
A spokesperson says they had other leaks that took priority over this one, and will be putting salt on the road Wednesday night to help drivers get through the mess. They hope to fix the water main break Thursday.
"We will probably see a few more people up on our lawns before they actually get it," said Gillespie.
The water department tells us they encourage people to call 311 if they see a leaking fire hydrant.
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Ali Hoxie can be reached at ali.hoxie@kshb.com
