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Dec 4, 2008 8:38 am US/Eastern
Decaying Infrastructure Blamed For Sinkhole
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
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This road closed after a water main break and sinkhole.
CBS
Breaking and leaking water mains are symptoms of decaying infrastructure.
Mary Bubala reports Baltimore officials are positioning themselves to benefit from a $500 billion stimulus package that could bring an end to stories like this one.
A cracked water main created a 10-foot wide sinkhole that almost swallowed a car on Radnor Road off York Road. There was also a 10-foot deep sinkhole, which was the result of a 42 inch main break, on 39th Street.
Both are the latest in a series of weather-related breaks that could become a thing of the past if Congress passes a $500 to $700 billion economic stimulus package next year. It's designed to create and protect 2.5 million jobs over two years.
Eyewitness News has learned details of the plan are the talk of Capitol Hill in anticipation of the Obama administration taking over in January. It's expected to boost the economy by providing billions in road and highway construction and for water mains, dams and sewer projects.
The stimulus plan might also help reduce area water bills, with the federal government picking up a big share of a required billion dollar sewer upgrade.
These are all projects the Bush administration threatened to veto. That threat won't be there in January, and with the tough economy Democrats are anxious to deliver on election year promises.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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