Frigid Weather Leads To Spike In Frozen Pipe Incidents; Several Area Restaurants Hit With Damage

OCEAN CITY — Persistent frigid weather over the last week or so has resulted in hundreds of incidents of frozen water pipes bursting and flooding residences and businesses, including a couple that will be forced to close for a couple of weeks.

Late last week and through last weekend, temperatures around the resort area rarely if ever got above the freezing mark and many of the days saw high temperatures in the teens. Through mid-week, temperatures rose slightly, but a winter storm dropped about six inches of snow on the area Tuesday, complicating the issue. Late this week, another blast of arctic air has arrived in the area, resulting in the same extreme drops in temperature.

As a result, the area has seen hundreds of cases of frozen pipes bursting and flooding residences and businesses with no relief in sight. Ocean City Communications Director Jessica Waters said on Wednesday there had been over 200 reported cases of frozen pipes bursting in the resort alone, including 37 from Monday to Wednesday.

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