Crews respond to 5th floor CMC Mercy water main break

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — CMC-Mercy resumed accepting new inpatients Thursday morning, except for those with chest pain, after a sprinkler line broke Wednesday night.

The line on the fifth floor broke at about 6 p.m. Wednesday, and water flowed onto lower floors.

Officials said eight patients had to be moved to other rooms as a result of flooding.

The Charlotte Fire Department and Mecklenburg EMS Agency responded to the water main break.

Joy Clifton was visiting her husband, who just got out of surgery. She said they had to keep him on the recovery floor because of the water.

"They almost got him to his room then the flooding started," said Clifton. "His room was the particular floor the pipe burst on is what I gathered, so they didn't want to put anybody on until they had it cleaned up."

One hospital employee said the water looked like a wave coming down the stairs.

"When I was on the second floor, I actually saw it coming down the staircase really fast," the employee said.

The employee said the basement took on more than 3 inches of water, the elevators were shut down and sandbags were brought out.

Officials are still assessing the damage and how much water is inside.

To see more local news stories, click here.

WSOC