A water leak along Luna Road in Carrollton caused ice to freeze, partially closing the road. Another in Frisco caused a winter wonderland.
CARROLLTON, Texas — Water pipe issues in Frisco and Carrollton created dramatic winter scenes Thursday as freezing temperatures transformed spraying water into ice formations, drawing curious onlookers and disrupting local activities.
At the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Coit Road in Frisco, a burst pipe turned the parking lot into a de-facto ice rink, complete with icicles several feet long hanging from lampposts. The issue occurred Thursday morning, according to church spokesperson Kris Katseanes.
"It was spraying water all over the place," Katseanes said. "It's kind of cool, I wish we could say we planned it but we didn't plan it."
The church reported no interior damage, and services will proceed as scheduled. Katseanes expects the icy display to stick around through the end of the week, although he expects warming temperatures forecast for Sunday may speed its melting.
The unexpected winter scene attracted local families, including 10-year-old twins Kellen and Riley Weigel.
"I think like a pipe burst or something... it went to water and then it turned to ice like immediately," they explained, describing the transformation as a "winter wonderland."
Visitor Dorina Lipovanciuk initially thought the scene was intentional.
"I thought they brought snow in on purpose because it looked like a fountain of snow," she said. "I've never seen anything like this."
Meanwhile in Carrollton, a separate water leak in the 2100 block of Luna Road created another striking winter tableau Wednesday night, with frozen water encasing power lines and covering trees and grass while surrounding areas remained dry. The incident forced road closures overnight due to ice on the roadway.
By 10 a.m. Thursday, Carrollton officials had reopened the southbound lanes of Luna Road, while northbound traffic was restricted to one lane as crews worked to repair the leak.
The incidents came during a period of unusually cold weather in North Texas. Katseanes noted that while the church had experienced pipe issues during previous freezes, they had never had anything like this.
Despite the inconvenience, some found silver linings in the unexpected displays. Families at the Frisco church slipped and slid on the ice and took photos in front of snow-covered trees.
"Not cool for the fact that we have to fix it," Katseanes said. "But fun for the community and kind of a unique circumstance here in North Texas."