More than 12 hours after a water main ruptured in the Middletown area -- the fourth main break in the last 10 days -- roadways remained closed as crews worked to repair the cracked road.

An 8-inch cast iron main broke near the intersection of Hancock Street and Emory Street just before 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, a city spokesperson said.

A small river of water flowed down Hancock Street and wrapped around the corner westward onto W. Washington.

The asphalt bubbled and cracked in several places around the break due to the pressure of the water.

The broken water main caused a traffic delay for commuters entering and exiting Interstate 5 at W. Washington Street and left five restaurants without water.

Just in time for Rush Hour! Water main break on Hancock diverting traffic. Traffic stopped at Washington for detour#NBC7 pic.twitter.com/5XbsTKbvY5 — Omari Fleming (@OmariNBCSD) August 15, 2018

The on and off-ramps of southbound I-5 at Washington Street were closed but reopened before 11 p.m.

A city spokesperson said water service should be restored by midnight but at 5 a.m. Thursday, crews were still working to repair the roadway.

No cause has been determined.

The city spokesperson said five restaurants were without water service as of 6:30 p.m.

Among those restaurants were Fishmonger's Market and 57 Degrees. Employees were seen using brooms and squeegees to try and keep their buildings from flooding.

"I heard like a pop, thought it was something in the kitchen, then a few minutes later one of my coworkers was like, 'Hey, dude. There's water leaking all over,'" Kevin Lua, a cook at Fishmonger's said.

Lua said the restaurant just unveiled a new menu and was gearing up for the evening crowd, but without running water they couldn't serve anyone. On the bright side, nothing was damaged, Lua said.

Crews were able to stop the flow of water around 4:30 p.m. SDPD was on scene directing traffic.

MTS said no trolley services were delayed, but detours were being planned for bus routes 10, 280 and 290.

Bus and trolley updates can be found @sdmts on Twitter and the MTS website.

The rupture was the fourth major water main break in the last 10 days.

On August 5, an 18-inch pipe break near the Midway District's old post office flooded roadways, left dozens without water and shut down several businesses.

On August 11, water flooding onto a Point Loma roadway due to a busted 2-inch feeder pipe prompted a Sig Alert on Midway Drive. About 500 customers were without water service.

On Monday, an 8-inch concrete main running along a hillside between two residential streets burst, causing a mudslide that flooded nearly a dozen Midway District homes and displaced residents.

No cause has been given in any of these incidents.