Burst water pipes shut down several Chicago area businesses amid winter's freeze, thaw

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A burst water pipe sent water running out the front door of a catering business on Chicago's North Side Thursday - and they're not the only business dealing with broken pipes during this winter freeze and thaw.

Crews worked frantically to get all the repairs done so business can return to normal at the shopping center near Peterson and Western in the Arcadia Terrace neighborhood.

When the pipes burst over the busy holiday weekend, it briefly shut down several businesses, including Balkan Taste restaurant.

"We had like 50 gallons on the floor," Balkan Taste's Bojan Bojanovic said. "I had to put a sign, 'closed because of frozen pipes.'"

The crews from Restrepo Construction have been swamped with repairs from broken water pipes for the last week or so. The problem here is that the heat went out and the water in the pipes froze, causing the pipes to split.

"Heater here failed and we got pipes frozen on both sides of the unit," said Miguel Restrepo.

And Wicker Park bar Whiskey Business is now closed for the foreseeable future while they clean up and repair the damage from a broken water pipe. It's just the latest in a number of businesses affected by frozen pipes ranging from a vintage record store to the main post office downtown.

In Elgin, Butera Motors has only been open for a few months, but they are now cleaning up after a pipe burst in a wall in the bathroom leaving water everywhere.

"Cold just got to the pipes. Insulation wasn't the best," Butera Motors' Alex Schatsick said. "We grabbed some squeegees and pushed it out the door. I was able to bring a fan and dry out the best we could."

With the forecast calling for above average temperatures for the next five days of so, experts say frozen pipe problems should be behind us.... at least for now.

Tips to help avoid burst pipes, thaw frozen pipes