Who to Call for a Water Emergency in the South Metro
The South Metro water emergency directory compiles what ten South Metro cities publish about a water or sewer emergency, six routing an after-hours call through 911, three publishing a direct number instead, and Prior Lake publishing no after-hours number on its water and sewer pages. For plumbing inside your own home, call Charli’s Emergency Plumbing at 952-521-0880, any hour.
Ten South Metro cities each publish their own procedure for a water or sewer emergency, and mixing them up sends you to the wrong number. Six of them route an after-hours emergency through 911. Three publish a direct number of their own instead. Prior Lake’s water and sewer pages now publish no after-hours number. This directory lists all ten, sourced to each city’s own pages, grouped by what you would actually reach at 2 a.m. For plumbing inside your home, call Charli’s Emergency Plumbing at 952-521-0880.
How This Directory Works
This directory compiles what each of ten South Metro cities publishes on its own website about water and sewer emergencies. Quoted passages link to the city page they came from.
The ten cities do not handle emergencies the same way, and that difference is what decides which number you call. Six of them, Eagan, Lakeville, Apple Valley, Burnsville, Rosemount, and Farmington, route an after-hours water or sewer emergency through 911 in some form. Three of them, Shakopee, Savage, and Inver Grove Heights, publish a direct number of their own instead, with no 911 involved. Prior Lake’s water and sewer pages now publish no after-hours number at all. The cities below run in that order: the 911 cities first, then Prior Lake, then the direct-number cities.
If your emergency is inside your walls rather than out in the street, none of this applies at all: call Charli’s Emergency Plumbing at 952-521-0880.
After hours: 911
Eagan (Dakota County)
After hours, on weekends, and on holidays, Eagan’s published procedure is to call 911.
The City of Eagan’s Utilities Division answers water and sewer questions at 651-675-5200, weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. After hours, on weekends, and on holidays, Eagan’s published procedure is to call 911. A dispatcher then contacts on-call Public Works crews. For plumbing inside an Eagan home, call Charli’s Emergency Plumbing at 952-521-0880.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Eagan home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or the sewer line from your house to the street | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| Water main break in the street, or a suspected sewer main problem, weekdays 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. | The City of Eagan’s Utilities Division, 651-675-5200 |
| The same city-infrastructure emergencies at night, on weekends, or on holidays | The City of Eagan’s published procedure: call 911. A dispatcher contacts on-call Public Works crews. |
Source: the City of Eagan’s utility maintenance and utility operations pages, cityofeagan.com.
Where the city draws the line on sewer: the City of Eagan maintains the sewer mains, manholes, and lift stations. In the city’s own words, the homeowner is responsible for the service line "from the home to, and including, the connection at the sewer main line." Eagan also asks residents to contact the Utilities Division first when a backup’s location is unclear, so crews can check whether the main is clear. If it is, the blockage is in your own service line.
Water draws the line somewhere else, and Eagan publishes that boundary too. In the city’s own words: "The City of Eagan owns the water service line from the water main in the street to the curb box in the yard (public side). Individual property owners own the service from the curb box to the water meter inside the home (private side). The curb box valve and water meter are owned and maintained by the City of Eagan." Eagan runs its own municipal water system, with city-owned wells and treatment, rather than buying treated water from a neighboring system: 20 wells across two well fields, feeding a North plant running since 1985 and a South plant running since 1992. The City says the North plant’s 2003-2005 expansion "allows the utility to produce 22 MGD," or 22 million gallons a day.
See the Eagan emergency plumber page for Eagan’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
After hours: 911
Lakeville (Dakota County)
Lakeville publishes two different closing times for the same business-hours line.
The City of Lakeville’s Utilities Division answers water and sewer questions at 952-985-2700. Lakeville’s own pages publish two different closing times for the same hours: body copy on the Watermain Breaks and Water Service Line Repairs pages says 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., while the Contact Us sidebar on those same pages says 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Lakeville home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or the sewer line from your house to the street | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| Water or sewer questions during business hours (the City of Lakeville publishes both 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. for the same department) | The City of Lakeville’s Utilities Division, 952-985-2700 |
| The same emergencies after hours, on weekends, or on holidays | The City of Lakeville’s published procedure: call 911. A dispatcher contacts on-call maintenance staff. |
Source: the City of Lakeville’s Watermain Breaks and Water Service Line Repairs pages, lakevillemn.gov.
Lakeville draws two separate lines for sewer, not one. In the city’s own words, repair liability runs "from the home to and including the connection at the property line," while cleaning and maintenance responsibility runs further, to "the City sanitary main sewer." For water, Lakeville has not published an equivalent boundary. The city states only that it is responsible for "routine repairs to your water meter." The City of Lakeville also asks residents to call the Utilities Division before a drain cleaning company, and says why plainly: it can help you avoid an unnecessary charge if the blockage turns out to be the city’s.
See the Lakeville emergency plumber page for Lakeville’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
After hours: 911
Apple Valley (Dakota County)
Apple Valley’s own city document also names a direct alternate line for the same after-hours window.
The City of Apple Valley’s Public Works Department answers water and sewer questions at 952-953-2400, Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Evenings, weekends, and holidays, the city’s own utility pages say plainly: call 911. One city document, the Property Owner’s Responsibility PDF, also names a direct alternate line for that same after-hours window, the Dakota County Communications Center at 952-322-2323. That is Apple Valley’s own published number, for an Apple Valley address. Burnsville’s own published police page confirms that number and the differently numbered lines a couple of other cities in this directory publish all reach the same agency, Dakota 911, which answers on both of the county’s area codes.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Apple Valley home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or the sewer line from your house to the street | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| Water or sewer questions during business hours | The City of Apple Valley’s Public Works Department, 952-953-2400, Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. |
| The same emergencies evenings, weekends, or holidays | The City of Apple Valley’s published procedure across its utility pages: call 911. One city document, the Property Owner’s Responsibility PDF, also names the Dakota County Communications Center, 952-322-2323, as an alternate line for the same hours. |
Source: the City of Apple Valley’s Drinking Water System and Sanitary Sewer System pages, and the Property Owner’s Responsibility PDF, applevalleymn.gov.
On sewer, the city’s own language runs "up to, and including, the connection at the property line" on public streets. On water, "the City maintains the water lines within the public right-of-way, and the water meter. Property owners are responsible for the remainder of the water system to their residence and inside the building." Apple Valley also tells residents they may want to call the city before a drain cleaning company, to avoid an unnecessary charge if the problem turns out to be the city’s line rather than theirs.
See the Apple Valley emergency plumber page for Apple Valley’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
After hours: 911
Burnsville (Dakota County)
Burnsville’s own pages publish two different instructions for a sewer backup.
The City of Burnsville’s Public Works Department answers water and sewer questions at 952-895-4550, weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Burnsville is also the city where Charli’s Emergency Plumbing itself is based. For plumbing inside a Burnsville home, call Charli’s at 952-521-0880, any hour.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Burnsville home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or your side of the yard shutoff valve | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| A sewer backup or blockage, weekdays 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., per the City’s sewer backup box | The City of Burnsville’s Public Works Department, 952-895-4550 |
| A sewer backup evenings or weekends, per the same box | The City of Burnsville’s published procedure: call 911. Crews will be dispatched. |
Source: the City of Burnsville’s Water and Sewer page and its sewer-backup FAQ, burnsvillemn.gov.
Burnsville’s own sewer-backup FAQ does not agree with the weekday sewer-backup row above. It reads: "Call 9-1-1 to report the sewer backup. You can call any time of day or night." That is the same city, the same topic, and a different instruction for daytime hours than the general emergency box gives.
Where the city draws the line: Burnsville is unusually specific. In the city’s own words, "The City owns the water shutoff in your yard within the right of way, typically located about 10 feet behind the City-owned curb," plus the water service line between that shutoff and the main in the street, plus the water meter itself. Everything on your side of that yard shutoff valve, including all internal plumbing, is the property owner’s. On sewer, the city calls the pipe that connects your building to the City’s main pipe the sewer lateral, and says: "The property owner owns it and is responsible for fixing it and clearing any blockages."
See the home page to reach a licensed plumber here any hour.
After hours: 911
Rosemount (Dakota County)
Rosemount names the Dakota Communications Center by name before telling you to dial 911.
The City of Rosemount’s Public Works Department answers water and sewer questions at 651-322-2022, weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., from its joint Police and Public Works campus on Biscayne Avenue. After hours, Rosemount’s own page does not just say "call 911." It states the full procedure: "For after-hours emergencies (water main break, sink hole, etc.) please contact the Dakota Communications Center (dial 911) and a dispatcher will alert the proper staff." Rosemount’s own page gives no direct phone number for the Dakota Communications Center, only 911. For plumbing inside a Rosemount home, call Charli’s at 952-521-0880, any hour.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Rosemount home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or the sewer service line to the City’s main | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| A water or sewer issue, weekdays, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. | Rosemount Public Works, 651-322-2022 |
| The same emergencies at night, on weekends, or on holidays | The City of Rosemount’s published procedure: dial 911, reach the Dakota Communications Center, and a dispatcher alerts the City’s on-call staff. |
Source: the City of Rosemount’s Public Works page and its frozen water service lines notice, rosemountmn.gov.
Where the city draws the line: for water, "the City is responsible for maintaining the water system and water mains. Homeowners are responsible for the service line and all plumbing on site." For sewer, "property owners are responsible for any backups that occur in the service line," the pipe from the home to the sewer main. Rosemount also publishes a genuine program: the City may assist with a first occurrence of a frozen service line, coordinating a contractor on the homeowner’s behalf, though it does not thaw the line itself. Rosemount does not publish a "call us first" instruction the way some neighboring cities do.
See the Rosemount emergency plumber page for Rosemount’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
Open 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Call 952-521-0880.
After hours: 911
Farmington (Dakota County)
Farmington’s emergency-line sentence and Public Works contact card give different hours, and its citywide footer gives a third set.
The City of Farmington’s emergency line answers at 651-280-6800, and the City’s own pages do not agree on its hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the emergency-line sentence itself and 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on the Public Works contact card, while the citywide footer gives a third set, Monday through Thursday 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Friday 7:00 to 11:00 a.m. After hours and on weekends, Farmington’s procedure is simply to call 911, with no dispatcher or on-call crew described. For plumbing inside a Farmington home, call Charli’s at 952-521-0880, any hour.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Farmington home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or your sewer service line up to the City’s main | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| A water or sewer issue during business hours (the emergency-line sentence and the Public Works contact card give different hours, and the citywide footer a third set) | Farmington Public Works, 651-280-6800 |
| The same emergencies after hours and on weekends | The City of Farmington’s published procedure: call 911. |
Source: the City of Farmington’s Public Works, Drinking Water, and Sewer Services pages, farmingtonmn.gov.
Where the city draws the line: for sewer, "the sewer line from a home, business, or other property to the city sewer main is the property owner’s responsibility." For water, Farmington states its maintenance staff’s role in general terms but never draws the same boundary. Farmington does not state where the City’s main ends and a homeowner’s service line begins. If a blockage’s location is unclear, Farmington’s own page says the City will work with you to identify it, and adds that many local plumbers provide that service once it is found to be your own line.
See the Farmington emergency plumber page for Farmington’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
Prior Lake (Scott County)
Prior Lake’s water and sewer pages now publish no after-hours number.
Prior Lake Public Works answers water and sewer questions at 952-447-9896, Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. None of the City’s water, sewer, or frozen-pipe pages publishes an after-hours number. The City’s Flood Preparedness page gives 952-445-1411, Scott County dispatch, for reporting a sudden rise in water or a problem with a storm pond, creek, stormwater drain, sanitary sewer manhole, or flooded street "after 3:30 pm or on weekends." The City’s directory lists the same number as "Scott County Dispatch Non-Emergency."
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Prior Lake home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or the sewer line from your house to the street | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| Water or sewer questions during business hours | Prior Lake Public Works Maintenance Center, 952-447-9896, Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. |
| Flooding, a storm drain, or a sanitary sewer manhole, after 3:30 p.m. or on weekends | 952-445-1411, which the City’s directory lists as Scott County Dispatch Non-Emergency, as published on the City’s Flood Preparedness page. No after-hours number is published for water or sewer. |
Source: the City of Prior Lake’s Public Works, Sanitary Sewer, Frozen Pipes, and Flood Preparedness pages and its directory, priorlakemn.gov.
On sewer, Prior Lake’s language is explicit: the property owner is responsible for "clearing blockages (debris, tree roots, etc.) in the service line between the home and the sanitary sewer main." The City of Prior Lake also asks residents with a backup to contact Public Works "so we can determine the location of the problem." Prior Lake does not publish equivalent boundary language for water.
See the Prior Lake emergency plumber page for Prior Lake’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
After hours: a direct number
Shakopee (Scott County)
Water and sewer sit with two different organizations here, each with its own number.
Shakopee splits water and sewer between two different organizations, and that split is the whole reason this section exists. Shakopee Public Utilities answers water calls at 952-445-1988 during business hours, with no after-hours phone line published, only an online outage form. City of Shakopee Public Works answers sewer calls at 952-233-9550 during business hours, or 952-445-1411 after hours, through Scott County dispatch. For plumbing inside your Shakopee home, call Charli’s Emergency Plumbing at 952-521-0880.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Shakopee home | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| Water main break, water service line problem, or no water, during business hours (Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Wednesday 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; Friday 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.) | Shakopee Public Utilities, 952-445-1988 |
| The same water emergencies after hours, on weekends, or on holidays | Shakopee Public Utilities publishes no after-hours phone number. Its published channel is the online "Report an Outage" form at shakopeeutilities.com. |
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Sanitary sewer backup or a suspected sewer main problem, during business hours (the City of Shakopee’s Public Works page states 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., while the Sanitary Sewer subpage on the same site states 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.) | City of Shakopee Public Works, 952-233-9550 |
| The same sewer emergencies after hours, on weekends, or on holidays | City of Shakopee Public Works publishes 952-445-1411, Scott County Sheriff’s non-emergency dispatch. |
Source: Shakopee Public Utilities’ contact and outage-reporting pages, shakopeeutilities.com, and the City of Shakopee’s Public Works and Sanitary Sewer pages, shakopeemn.gov.
One wrinkle: the City of Shakopee’s own "report a problem" page groups water main breaks into the same after-hours Public Works number, 952-445-1411, even though water is Shakopee Public Utilities’ domain, not the city’s. Shakopee Public Utilities bills residents for both water and sewer on one combined statement, which is likely where the confusion starts, but the utility does not own or maintain the sewer system.
See the Shakopee emergency plumber page for more on how the two organizations divide responsibility.
After hours: a direct number
Savage (Scott County)
Savage publishes one number for water and sewer, with no 911 redirect.
The City of Savage publishes one number for water and sewer emergencies, 952-224-3440, and states its crews are available around the clock for true emergencies. Savage does not publish a 911 redirect for water or sewer at all, its own direct line covering both. For plumbing inside a Savage home, call Charli’s Emergency Plumbing at 952-521-0880.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Savage home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or the sewer line from your house to the street | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| Sewage backing up into your home, a missing manhole or water valve cover, a broken fire hydrant, or a water main break flooding the street, any hour of the day | The City of Savage, 952-224-3440. The city states these are its responsibility and require immediate attention. |
| Low water pressure | The City of Savage’s own guidance: this is usually a maintenance issue, not an emergency. |
Source: the City of Savage’s Public Works Utilities page, savagemn.gov.
Savage does not publish a boundary statement distinguishing city-owned water and sewer lines from the homeowner’s, the way some of its neighbors do. What Savage does publish clearly is the single-number, around-the-clock model itself: one line, staffed at every hour, with no separate after-hours number to remember. The City’s own published emergency line also carries an after-hours fee schedule.
See the Savage emergency plumber page for Savage’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
After hours: a direct number
Inver Grove Heights (Dakota County)
After hours, Inver Grove Heights names a direct county dispatch number, not 911.
Inver Grove Heights Public Works answers water and sewer maintenance calls at 651-450-4309, weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. After hours, the city’s own Water and Sewer Emergencies page states the procedure plainly: "please call the Dakota County Dispatch number 651-322-2323." Inver Grove Heights does not tell residents to call 911 for a water or sewer emergency. That number is Inver Grove Heights’s own, for an Inver Grove Heights address. For plumbing inside an Inver Grove Heights home, call Charli’s at 952-521-0880, any hour.
| Situation | Who to call |
|---|---|
| Plumbing inside your Inver Grove Heights home: pipes, fixtures, water heater, sump pump, or the plumbing inside your house | Charli’s Emergency Plumbing, any hour: Call Now: 952-521-0880 |
| Water and sewer maintenance issues, weekdays 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. | Inver Grove Heights Public Works, 651-450-4309 |
| The same issues nights, weekends, and holidays | The City’s own published after-hours number: Dakota County Dispatch, 651-322-2323. Not 911. |
Source: the City of Inver Grove Heights’s Water and Sewer Emergencies page, ighmn.gov.
Where the city draws the line: Inver Grove Heights does not publish where the City’s main ends and a homeowner’s line begins. One more wrinkle: roughly a third of Inver Grove Heights, by land area, is not on city water or sewer at all. The City’s own Rural Residential area runs on private wells and private septic systems instead, and the numbers above are for a city water main that those properties do not have.
See the Inver Grove Heights emergency plumber page for Inver Grove Heights’s housing-era detail and neighborhoods.
If You Are Not Sure Which City You Are In
A South Metro mailing address does not always match the city that comes to mind first. Your water bill or property tax statement lists the city that actually bills you, printed at the top. If the problem is inside your home, the city does not matter at all. Charli’s Emergency Plumbing covers the whole South Metro at one number, 952-521-0880, any hour, in any of these ten cities or the towns between them.
When It Is Not a City Problem at All
Most of what goes wrong inside a South Metro home never touches the city. All of it is plumbing inside your walls, not infrastructure in the street, and all of it is a call Charli’s Emergency Plumbing takes any hour.
See burst pipe repair, frozen pipe repair, sewer backup repair, water heater repair, drain cleaning, sump pump repair, water line repair, and toilet and fixture flooding.
One number for whichever city you are in
Call 952-521-0880. We are open right now.