Lewiston firefighter Chris Fournier shines his flashlight on water gushing out of a snowbank on Ashmount Street in Lewiston Thursday night. Thousands of gallons of water flooded streets, backyards and basements throughout the neighborhood because of a water main break. (Sun Journal photo by Russ Dillingham)

LEWISTON — A water main burst beneath Ashmount Street Thursday night, sending muddy water gushing across the roadway and disrupting water service across the neighborhood.

The problem was reported at about 5 p.m. when a passerby reporting seeing water bubbling up onto the street near the corner of Ashmount and Treemount Drive.

When fire crews arrived a short time later, water was rushing out of the ground, bursting through a snowbank and covering a long section of Ashmount Street.

By 5:30 p.m., firefighters were setting up barricades around the area and crews from the Water Department were on the way to assess the situation and begin repairs.

Fire crews were also staying in the area to help residents whose basements were beginning to flood as a result of the main break.

The extent of the damage was not immediately known as workers prepared to dig into the ground to expose the broken main.