Freezing Temps and Tie-ins: Construction Update From February 2025
- jaimyebartak
- Mar 13
- 2 min read
Spring may be in the air now, but bitter cold temperatures and icy conditions in February created a formidable working climate at the West Parish site. Workers excavating at the north embankment of the 1920s slow sand filters faced overnight temperatures in the teens and daytime highs in the 20s, plus sleet and snow. It’s not easy to dig through four feet of frost in the ground, but crews nevertheless worked through each day (and sometimes night!) to keep the project on schedule.
Test-pitting: not just for archeologists!
Why all the digging? Before any new construction can begin, crews need to establish temporary tie-ins to keep the water supply flowing during the upcoming 4 years of construction. That means locating, exposing, and connecting to buried utility pipes that have been in service for decades. Those utilities are not always accurately documented on old plans and the only way to verify their location is to physically dig down. This exploratory process is called “test-pitting.”
“The largest challenge right now is identifying every buried utility on site ,” said Chris Brosseau, Construction Manager for Hazen and Sawyer. “It can be unpleasant work in this weather, but we can’t safely proceed with construction until this task is complete.”
These photos represent the not-so-glamorous “before” shots. Building hidden, temporary installations is not the most rewarding part of a job, but crews know this tie-in phase is critical to the more exciting construction elements ahead. Meanwhile, the region can be proud of the hard work this construction team is putting in to bring this critical infrastructure project into the next phase of construction, and into the warmer weather!
