District heating pipe bursts by Presidential Palace - traffic in disarray
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Monday morning's traffic in the centre of Helsinki was hampered, particularly for tram passengers, when a district heating pipe located just outside the Presidential Palace by the Market Square chose to terminate its contract with immediate effect.
The burst pipe on Mariankatu brought out the police to direct traffic, and trams to and from the district of Katajanokka juddered to a halt, with a temporary bus connection being brought in to replace the service.
Lines other than the No.4 are unaffected.
The leak was noticed at around 9 a.m. this morning, and initially it was unclear whether it was a main pipe or a branch leading to one of the nearby buildings, which include the Presidential Palace itself.
In any event, Katajanokka and the surrounding area are without hot water at present, and probably will be so until this evening, by which time Helsinki Energy hope to have the problem fixed.
Pipe bursts of this nature are generally a result of subsoil frosts, or of damage caused by loading from traffic.
Helsingin Sanomat
