WASHINGTON - A busy Northwest street is still a mess after a major water main break Wednesday morning. The busted pipe flooded part of Florida Avenue and sent water, mud and debris into nearby homes and businesses.

An estimated 150,000 gallons water burst through the pavement Wednesday morning in NW, sending a river down Florida Avenue that blanketed nearby basements in mud and debris.

"I just woke up and there was this big drama downstairs," said one resident.

"There's mud and sewage all over my carpet," said D.C. resident Elizabeth Davidz.

A D.C. Fire department video shows the water moments after it burst through the pavement and gushed down Florida Avenue, battering homes along the way.

"It was like this flood and water was just coming up from the ground," said D.C. Resident Noah Armstrong.

Ben Muli says the water reached three feet in his basement and left a coating of mud. He fears it may have damage the very foundation of his house.

"Because it is a basement it probably will affect the structure of the house," Muli said.

Authorities evacuated several houses until they cut off the flow of water to the ruptured main and stopped the flooding.

Now, while crews drain the flooded-out crater and repair the 113-year-old line, home owners are in the midst of a massive cleanup effort.

"It's going to take a lot of work, I think, because there is a lot of mud here. We are trying to figure that out right now how to get this cleaned up," Muli added.

D.C. fire department spokesman Ken Crosswhite says a 20-inch water main broke Wednesday morning in the area of 18th and U streets Northwest.

Crosswhite says a sinkhole opened up and there were several gas leaks in the area.

"It woke us up up about seven in the morning... That the place was flooded. We looked out and there was water all over the place," said resident Joseph Currie.

"I was coming down to have breakfast I think," said Monique Lecomte, who found her home flooded. "It was too much."

Emergency personnel kept the road closed due to a sinkhole in the street they said was on the verge of collapse. "We don't know the instability. If you see all the dirt and rocks on the ground -- this actually came from underneath," explained Billy Hayes of the D.C. fire department. "So we don't know what's been washed out. We don't know what amount of weight it would take to step on that asphalt and for that road to fall through."

It was reported that some residents on Florida Avenue and 17th Street had no water, lights or gas.

Emergency road and utility crews spent hours at the scene working on repair and cleanup.

This is the second time in the last three months that a large water main has broken in this area.

D.C. Water and Sewer officials handed out information to neighbors so they'd know how file damage claims. Their plan was to replace the broken pipe by the end of the night Wednesday. Replacing the buckled street and pavement will take longer, especially if it continues to rain.

Businesses in the area had to close. Some were flooded, and other were simply inaccessible to customers because of the road blockage. Business owner Brian Laboard said, "They wait until it breaks instead of repairing it before it breaks. That's the problem, I think."

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