After a 12-inch water main on Birch Street ruptured last week, PA American Water will replace 900 feet of the line on Birch and Jackson streets, a company spokesman said today.

The $200,000 project will begin today and is expected to run through Aug. 19, said spokesman Gary Lobaugh. Crews will be replacing cast iron piping that is more than 70 years old with ductile iron main lines that should improve reliability.

Crews will be on site working Monday through Friday, from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and service disruptions will affect about five customers, including the YWCA, in the project corridor, the company said.

The service disruptions could last up to three hours, Lobaugh said, and would occur while crews are transferring water service onto the new main lines.

The company said jugged water would be made available at Young's Funeral Home, 172 West Jefferson Street, during the service transfer portions of the project. The company said it was also notifying customers to have three hours worth of water available during that transfer process.

The company said that while the service disruptions are expected to be limited to five customers, it had sent out precautionary telephone notifications to 21 customers located near the project corridor.