Akron is warning downtown property owners, workers and residents that the earth may soon shake beneath their feet.
Contractors might begin blasting underground in a couple of weeks as workers continue building a giant underground tunnel called the Ohio Canal Interceptor Tunnel, as part of the city’s massive sewer project.
“It’s not something to be alarmed about,” city project manager Michelle DiFiore said Friday. “It’s not something to be worried about.”
In fact, the blasting might not even take place. It all depends on the softness of the rock and whether contractors Kenny Construction Co. and Obayashi Corp. need to use explosives.
The city has sent letters to property owners and residents near the two potential blasting sites to notify them of the possibility.
The overall sewer project, estimated to cost more than $1 billion, is designed to curb sewage overflows into local waterways. The tunnel, 27 feet in diameter, will stretch 6,240 feet from off West Exchange Street to near the Mustill Store at depths of 70 to 160 feet.
The two construction areas where the blasting would occur are at West Exchange Street near South Main Street, and along the Akron Innerbelt at West Market Street.
People within a half-mile of each site might hear or feel explosions, or even see a cloud of dust rise.
“It’s not going to be any different than a large truck rolling by the building,” DiFiore said in an attempt to describe the potential vibrations.
A test blast would be done before a real one, and there are monitors set up to study the response, she said.
Before each blast, the contractor would alert people with five long whistles five minutes before a blast, five short whistles one minute before a blast and one long whistle after the blast.
The blasting can take place anytime from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. between October and February. There’s no schedule for when blasts would occur or their potential frequency.
DiFiore said officials at Akron Children’s Hospital and the federal building, and owners of historic buildings already have expressed concerns.
Lisa Aurilio, vice president for patient services and chief nursing officer at Akron Children’s, said the hospital doesn’t anticipate any disruption in patient care.
“We don’t expect to notice any blasts or vibration from the work,” she said in a prepared statement. “There is a chance that patients, families and staff may hear warning horns from the Exchange/Main Street locations. We have notified our families and patients and staff about the possibility of hearing the blasts to reduce the risk of alarm.”
The city will work with those concerned and alert safety forces in advance of any blasts, DiFiore said.
“When people hear ‘blasting’ and when people hear ‘explosives,’ those are words of concern,” DiFiore said. “These are people who are certified with explosives. There are a whole lot of regulations that go along with bringing the explosives into the community.”
For more information about the project, go online to: www.akronwaterwaysrenewed.com/ocit.aspx.
Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter at @armonrickABJ.