Pipe burst in Leipzig: Mockauer Straße closed, water cut off for residents!

Pipe burst in Leipzig: Mockauer Straße closed, water cut off for residents!

On Tuesday evening, May 26, 2025, another water pipe burst in Leipzig, which severely affected the water supply in parts of the Mockau district. The incident was reported at 9:05 p.m., according to waterworks spokesman Marc Backhaus. An accident on Mockauer Straße resulted in water and mud leaking from a damaged pipe. Shortly after the report, the water was turned off at 9:20 p.m. to prevent further damage.

The accident affected three houses, whose residents were temporarily supplied with water trucks. The exact extent of the damage will be checked on Wednesday, May 27th. This situation led to a temporary closure of Mockauer Straße in the direction out of the city, but trams were able to run on the street again.

Further incidents and their backgrounds

The burst pipe in Mockau is not the only incident of this kind in Leipzig. A burst water pipe near Otto-Heinze-Straße became known on Thursday morning, as a result of which residents were temporarily disconnected from the water supply. Katja Gläß, spokeswoman for the Leipzig waterworks, explained that the latest damage was classified as minor and that repair work was already underway on site. Water flow is expected to return to normal throughout the day.

In addition, the waterworks reported two more pipe bursts on Karl-Liebknecht-Straße and Kurt-Schumacher-Straße the day before, which led to flooding. These repairs are expected to last until early February. In this context, Gläß stated that there is no increase in burst pipes in the city, although possible causes such as old pipes, high traffic loads and cold temperatures are taken into account. In fact, temperatures of up to minus 12.6 degrees were measured in Saxony on Thursday night.

The age of the pipes and the need for renovation

The water pipe network in Leipzig is over 100 years old, with many parts dating back to the 19th century. The chances of solving the problems quickly are made more difficult by the age of the pipes. A major renovation began in 1991, but despite progress that has reduced annual damage from around 3,000 in the 1990s to around 500 today, the risk of burst pipes remains.

An existing problem is that the urban area has a pipeline network of around 3,500 kilometers, of which only 0.7% is renewed annually. Given these figures, a complete renovation, even with the targeted increase to 1-1.2% renovation rate, would possibly take several centuries. The required capital contribution of 200 million euros must be approved according to the city of Leipzig's budget before an increase in the renovation rates is possible.

The current incidents illustrate the challenges facing the water supply in Leipzig. Necessary inspections and careful planning are crucial to prevent further accidents like this in the future. In addition, the city has already initiated measures to systematically renovate endangered pipe system locations in order to ensure long-term security of supply.

The Leipzig waterworks regularly inform residents about current developments and planned measures in order to keep the effects of burst pipes and their repairs as low as possible. The main hope for the affected households is that the current damage can be repaired quickly and that the water supply will soon be stable again.

For further information on the events in Leipzig, readers can read the reporting from Day24, LVZ and Leipzig Internet newspaper consult.