A water main break near 19th Street and Naismith Drive has closed 19th Street for several blocks likely until sometime Wednesday, a city utilities spokeswoman said.

Jeanette Klamm, the city’s utilities programs manager, said the eight-inch water main broke just before 4 p.m. Tuesday near 19th and Missouri streets.

“It has done quite a bit of damage to the asphalt,” Klamm said.

Crews closed 19th Street between Maine Street west to Naismith Drive. Klamm said crews would be working to try to get it open Tuesday night but it likely won’t open until Wednesday because a street crew likely would need to repair the asphalt.

A crew was working to repair the water main Tuesday evening, and water was expected to be restored some time Tuesday night to 25 residences in the 1800 block of Missouri Street, she said. The department was still trying to determine what caused the line to break, but Klamm said the ground can shift during periods of little to no rain.