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Hard Winter And Aging Pipes Lead To Leaks In Glacier National Park

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Published Date

May 31, 2019
The TWo Medicine Campground in Glacier National Park didn't open as scheduled due to maintenance issues/NPS file

The Two Medicine Campground in Glacier National Park didn't open Friday as scheduled due to maintenance issues/NPS file

A long Rocky Mountain winter, coupled with aging pipes, has led to "significant water and wastewater leaks throughout" Glacier National Park.

In April and May, crews spent several weeks finding and repairing leaks to aging pipes in the Many Glacier area, according to a park release. Earlier this month, a crack in the force main along the west side of the Going-to-the-Sun Road required significant repairs. Now crews have found multiple leaks in Two Medicine’s water system.

Each spring, staff reconnect the water system after winter, testing it to ensure proper water delivery. While it’s routine for some leaks to occur, typically they do not require such significant repair.

As a result, Two Medicine Campground did not open on Friday as scheduled. The park will update its campground status page when the campground is available for use. That may be later this weekend or into the next few weeks depending on crew success repairing the multiple water leaks.

In addition to aging infrastructure, the park is also facing a significant utility operator shortage on the east side of the park due to lack of job applicants. The staffing shortage also contributes to extended delays in identifying water system problems and completing repairs. The park continues to actively recruit to fill the open positions, including offering signing bonuses for qualified applicants upon hire.

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