Once again, the city’s aging infrastructure gave us a scare.

A water leak Thursday on North Washington Street near the Fort Hill National Cemetery had city officials thinking the worst — the city’s 36-inch main waterline sprung a leak, bringing with it fears the city may have to shut the whole water system down for repairs. Fortunately, the problem was an old 8-inch line serving the Vicksburg National Military Park — a line one knew existed until Thursday, because it wasn’t on any of the city’s infrastructure maps.

It’s not the first time an unknown line has caused city officials to think the worst. About three years ago, water from a broken 2-inch service line that at one time served a long closed and forgotten business at the corner of Levee and Washington street began seeping through the pavements in the vicinity of the city’s mainline, causing city workers to tear up the street. The line, which had never been capped, was shut off.

The city’s main waterline, which was installed in 1967, is part of a very aging, and slowly crumbling infrastructure, some of which dates back at least to the Civil War — a good reason why city officials ought to take a more detailed look at what’s running under the city’s sidewalks and streets.

Mayor George Flaggs Jr. alluded to the problem Thursday when he talked about the water leak, citing it as another reason the city needs a 10-year plan, “so we can study and plan and identify these deteriorating lines. We have a GIS system now that can identify and locate those lines.”

He’s right. The city needs to do an infrastructure survey either in-house or hire someone to do it. Part of that work is underway with the assessment of the sewer system, which is part of the city’s consent decree with the Environmental Protection Agency to assess, map, upgrade or replace the 107-year-old sewer system.

But more needs to be done. The city needs to look at its waterline system and storm drains. The waterline situation is being addressed with work to build a backup to the main waterline, but the storm drains, which are older than the sewer lines, need addressing.

The Board of Mayor and Aldermen developed a capital improvement program funded by a $9.2 million bond issue. It’s time it did the same thing for the utilities and at the same time begin an evaluation of our infrastructure. If we want to be a tourist destination and attract more business, such a study and an improvements program is vital. We can be neither if our streets are falling in and the water in the pipes doesn’t run.