Unprecedented images were recorded in an area of Detroit in the United States, when a major spill flooded streets, which subsequently froze due to the polar cold.

At the same time, nearly 300 residents were taken to hotels after a water main leak flooded their homes with freezing water, leaving them without heat amid polar temperatures.

Authorities say the damage could take up to six weeks to repair. The damage to the nearly century-old pipeline caused widespread flooding and crippled key infrastructure in the city. The water pipeline was constructed around 1930, according to officials who were still trying to determine what caused the huge pipe to rupture. Temperatures were well below freezing at the time of the rupture.

Even with available hotel rooms sponsored by the city, hundreds stayed in their frozen and flooded homes or moved in with others as the city’s mechanism focused on “full restoration” that includes repairing the mains and making sure homes are habitable.

Adding a tragic dimension to the situation was the death of two children, 9-year-old Darnell and 2-year-old A’Mila Carrie, who reportedly froze to death while living with their family in a van. The Detroit community came together Wednesday to honor their memory at a ceremony organized by Mayor Mike Duggan’s office. Detroit Deputy Mayor Melia Howard was emotional and said, “I have three children and have been working with this family since day one. I wanted to be here to support them.”

Todd King, chief resilience officer for the Great Lakes Water Authority, said workers at the site of the break, which the mayor described as “a monumental hole in the ground,” had not yet reached the exact location of the break along the main pipeline.

Such large transmission pipelines carry water from pumping stations to the Detroit River. This water then flows to the communities served by the Great Lakes Regional Water Authority. Water from the main pipelines goes to smaller pipelines that run through neighborhoods and home service lines.