Credit union flooded this morning

A water line break this morning flooded Bear Paw Credit Union, causing a substantial amount of damage, Bear Paw's Executive Vice President Gerry Veis said.

The water, Veis said this morning, rushed past the front door of the building, engulfed the main floor - including his office - and went down the stairs and into the basement. The carpet will have to be replaced, Veis said, as parts of the credit union are immersed in up to 3 or 4 inches of water. Veis added there might be some electronics that will need replacing.

The cleanup, he estimated, should be complete by this afternoon and the credit union is open all day.

Public Works Director Dave Peterson said that Public Works was notified of the incident around 6 this morning and employees responded and turned the water off. The line, he said, is a fire line that either goes to Office Equipment's or the credit union's sprinkler system. At the time of printing, Public Works was still working on figuring out whose fire line it is.

"The water line broke into the street," he said.

Peterson said it's not certain at this time, but his best guess would be the break was a frost break, a result of the recent cold temperatures.

Veis and other credit union employees were working this morning on cleaning up the mess.