Targeted Dive Search For Broken Piping Comes Up Empty

Now that the boil water order has been lifted — and it's safe to drink the water in 30 eastern Massachusetts communities — the investigation into what caused the major water main break over the weekend is underway.

But on Tuesday, State Police divers came up empty after searching for piping parts within a 200-yard targeted area at the bottom of the Charles River in Weston. There are no immediate plans for the police divers to search the river floor again.

Investigators were looking for a giant metal coupling weighing up to a ton that they believe gave way. Investigators think it broke in two — about 15 inches per piece.

Before abandoning Tuesday's search, Lt. William Freeman, the dive unit's commander, detailed his team's difficult task.

"The chances of recovering that here in the Charles are very good because of the size of it," Freeman said. "But whether it made it to the Charles, we don't know, we're just ruling out this area where all the water was washed into the Charles River. It may be there lodged in the mud, or it may be there under the mud."

Divers were using underwater metal detectors in case the pieces are under the mud. Teams are also dredging the Charles of the massive amount of soil and debris dislodged by the pipe failure.