Utility crews pump water from a hole after a break in a main line just east of 19th and Harper streets on Tuesday afternoon.

A water main break along 19th Street, and just east of Harper Street, left a muddy sidewalk Tuesday afternoon. Greg Counts checked the damage along his fence after the water rushed into his garage.

Residents in east Lawrence got a soggy surprise Tuesday afternoon when a 12-inch water main break closed 19th Street just east of Harper Street.

The water main pipe split open around 12:45 p.m. Tuesday, blowing a hole in the street and leaving a 15-foot-long opening in the pipe, according to Jeannette Klamm, a city utility spokeswoman.

Greg Counts lives across the street from the break and was home at the time of the incident. He says although he didn’t hear the pipe burst, he quickly noticed the enormous amount of water rushing through his property.

“It had knocked all of the pavement up and there was water about a foot to a foot and a half high,” said Counts, who spent the afternoon bailing water out of his garage. “It flooded my garage, floated my air conditioner and now you can see the mud and residue that I get to clean up.”

The road will be reduced to one lane through Thursday and then reopened with a gravel overlay, Klamm said. The street department will then come in early next week and permanently repair the roadway.