A North Vancouver road remains closed several hours after a broken pipe sent water rushing through the area, splitting the road open and leaving debris in its path.

An official with the district said a 15-centimetre-wide cement water main broke at St. Albans Avenue at approximately 7 a.m. on Thursday. St. Albans is located northeast of the north end of Lonsdale Avenue.

Crews were able to turn off the source in about an hour, but not before water rushed down to the 3800-block of Lonsdale.

Residents of the area woke to find debris scattered across the street, and a large crack in the pavement. Traffic had to be rerouted away from the area as crews worked to clean up the damage.

At least one home was badly damaged by the break. Garth Sylte said his family's home had several centimetres of water in the garage, and some in the basement. His backyard is filled with rocks and debris.

"The whole driveway was a solid sheet of water," Sylte said Wednesday.

Sylte's family home appeared to have suffered the worst damage, but at least three other neighbouring homes also suffered some flooding.

Another resident, Susan Archibald, said the noise of the water alerted her to the flooding.

"What I noticed most was the noise. It was just pounding. It was a torrent of water between the two houses," she said.

Crews are working to repair the damage, and said that it is not yet known what caused the break. There were no construction projects underway in the area at the time, but a district official said some of the infrastructure is aging and slated to be replaced.

"However, every now and then an older pipe fails before we can get to it," District of North Vancouver Communications Coordinator Stephanie Smiley said.

With a report from CTV Vancouver's Sheila Scott