Residents of Eastern Moscow had a good excuse for being late to work on Tuesday. A one-meter wide water pipe burst, flooding one of the city’s main highways and preventing people getting in or out of the area.
The flood caused massive rush-hour snarl-ups, prompting police to redirect traffic to free up congestion. The city authorities were forced to cut electricity to the trolleybuses, to stop people being electrocuted. Trucks, who had an obvious advantage in the conditions, became taxis for the morning rush hour. But only for those prepared to walk in cold water to get to them. The faulty pipe dates back to the sixties, and had long outlived its service age. However, water supplies to households were not interrupted. Maintenance workers redirected the flow from a reserve pipe.