Somerville Water Main Break Sent a 20-Foot Geyser Shooting Into the Air Near Union Square

A Somerville water main break turned Boston Street into a disaster zone Thursday afternoon, and the video is exactly as wild as you’d expect.

The break happened at the intersection of Boston Street and Munroe Street, just outside Union Square. Water shot 20 feet into the air, sending a massive geyser over the street and raining down on everything around it. One neighbor reported that the water was hitting her second-floor window. Rocks and chunks of road surface were flung into the air with enough force to crack car windshields and damage storefronts. At least one business had its basement flooded.

This was not a slow leak. This was a full rupture.

What the Somerville Water Main Break Actually Looked Like

The force of the water tore up the road surface and sent debris flying down Boston Street all the way to Washington Street. Witnesses described it as a scene out of a disaster movie — a column of water surging upward, chunks of asphalt airborne, cars sitting with cracked windshields and no obvious explanation until they looked up.

Video spread across social media quickly. The footage shows the geyser at full force, water cascading down in sheets across the block, with bystanders keeping a safe distance and filming from around the corner.

Somerville Water and Sewer called in a local construction partner to repair the pipe. Water service was shut off to the surrounding area during repairs. The city has not yet released a timeline on when the affected businesses will receive compensation for the damage, if at all.

Union Square Was Not Ready for This

The timing was rough. Union Square has been one of Somerville’s fastest-evolving neighborhoods over the past several years, with new restaurants, shops, and residential buildings opening steadily. A lot of that development sits along the streets affected by Thursday’s break.

At least one business reported water flooding directly into its basement. Windshields on multiple vehicles were cracked by flying road debris. The street itself will need significant repair work before it returns to normal.

This kind of infrastructure failure is not random. Greater Boston’s water and sewer systems include pipes that are decades old, some dating back more than a century. When they go, they go hard. The Somerville water main break is a dramatic example of what happens when aging infrastructure finally gives out, but it is not an isolated incident. The region has been dealing with water main failures at a consistent clip for years.

What Happens Next

The immediate repairs are underway, but the deeper question is what the Somerville water main break reveals about the state of the city’s infrastructure overall. Somerville has invested heavily in above-ground improvements — the Green Line Extension, Union Square redevelopment, new bike lanes — while the pipes running beneath all of it age quietly.

This is not a Somerville-specific problem. It is a Boston-area problem. Cities across Greater Boston have been deferring underground infrastructure investment for years in favor of more visible projects. Thursday’s geyser was visible alright, but not in the way anyone wanted.

If your car was on Boston Street yesterday afternoon and you came back to find a cracked windshield, the city is currently your best avenue for a damage claim. Somerville’s public works department is the starting point.

Stay off Boston Street near Union Square until repairs wrap. And maybe park somewhere else for the next few days just to be safe.

Did you see the geyser go up? Drop your videos and photos in the comments.