Water main break on Bloomfield Avenue forces traffic diversion, Montclair Water Bureau says

A water main break early on Tuesday, March 7, occurred on Bloomfield Avenue at the Gates Avenue intersection, the Montclair Water Bureau reported. The exact address of the water main break is 295 Bloomfield Avenue which is currently the address for ARC Beauty Salon.

The break has closed the Bloomfield Avenue westbound lane between Gates Avenue and South Willow Street, according to the Montclair Township website. The eastbound lane is open.

Though the water has been turned back on, a boil water advisory was sent out to eight addresses in the area as the township awaits satisfactory results from water testing. The township told customers in the letter, "A potential or actual threat to the quality of water being provided to you currently exists." Customers in the area are advised to either boil water or to use bottled water for all needs until Montclair Water Bureau alerts them of any changes.

Businesses like Integrated Healthcare of Montclair were slightly affected by the water main break. Owner, Dr. Tyran Mincey, said he and his staff spent two hours cleaning up the mud and water that was a result of the break. Mincey recently renovated the parking lot and installed a new drainage system that was able to offset some potential damage.

Though the front of his business didn’t suffer any main damages, Mincey is worried about the water that may have entered his basement. Luckily the damage did not cause any of Mincey’s appointments to be rescheduled or canceled.

Next door, ARC Beauty Salon wasn’t as lucky. Owner of the salon, Ray Shrestha, said, “It’s a disaster”. He described the damage as “terrible” as employees scramble to clean up muddy water from all of the wax rooms. The business is temporarily closed as they work to try to get the damage under control.

Police officers are diverting traffic to Gates Avenue and Lackawanna Plaza.