Overview
- D.C. Water announced it will start emergency rehabilitation on Monday, June 15 to repair about 1,700 linear feet of the Potomac Interceptor at Muddy Branch with work expected through the end of September 2026.
- Inspections found significant corrosion and exposed rebar in the Muddy Branch section, and D.C. Water said the most compromised portion is encased in concrete which it says lowers the immediate risk of collapse.
- To manage risk while crews work, teams are conducting twice‑weekly visual inspections, installing flow‑monitoring sensors, clearing trees and brush, and building an above‑ground bypass pipeline and pumping system to divert wastewater around the site.
- The repaired segment sits upstream of key regional intakes for WSSC Water’s Potomac Water Filtration Plant and the Washington Aqueduct at Great Falls, so a rupture there could threaten drinking‑water sources for the region.
- The emergency move follows the Jan. 19 rupture of the same 54‑mile Potomac Interceptor that released roughly 240 million gallons, spurred congressional inquiries and lawsuits by the Justice Department and Maryland, and has intensified regional coordination and oversight.