WARSAW — Sinkhole opens during road construction on Fort Wayne Street on Friday, Aug. 19 due to a failure of sanitary pipes.

City engineer James Emans states this is, “Not a major problem,” but Fort Wayne Avenue will be closed to through traffic at least through the weekend. Emans indicated he was unsure if the sinkhole would cause a delay in the final construction end date.

Fort Wayne Street has been under construction for the majority of the summer for a city project to relay the sanitary sewer and rebuild the road. The sanitary sewage that is being replaced was installed in 1899. The lifespan of this equipment typically is 50 years. While most of the piping in great shape says Emans, some of the joints are leaking which most likely caused the sinkhole.