Palm Bay blames an old pipe failure for this week’s sewage spill — likely the worst in the city’s history — that’s fouling the air and backyard waters for hundreds of homeowners along Turkey Creek with untold volumes of raw sewage.
The people living along this creek see it and can smell it from their homes, and the frustration and anger are growing.
“I guess my question would be what kind of maintenance were they doing on it, and why are they surprised that it broke?” said Erin Conway, who lives on Mandarin Drive, ground zero of the spill.
She sees the dead fish floating up, and a great egret that had to be rescued. “It’s so sad,” Conway added. “We’ve been breathing this stuff in for days.”
The city says the main pipe next to its plant was supposed to last much longer.
“The damaged section, a 20-foot-long pipe, was found to have a 2- to 3-inch crack running the full horizontal length,” the city’s press release said. “Although the pipe was originally expected to have a lifespan of 80-100 years, it failed after just 37 years, or half its lifespan.”
The “significant sewer forcemain break” happened around 11 p.m. June 8 around 1050 Clearmont St. NE, near the city’s sewer plant. The incident involved a 20-inch sewer main that serves as a primary feed to the city’s sewage treatment plant.
“This break could not have been reasonably anticipated,” the city’s press release said. “Routine inspections on our collection system occur monthly. The last inspection of the air release valve was completed two weeks prior. In addition, pressure data loggers are being monitored routinely for increased demand, which shows stress on the system.”
How did this sewage spill play out?
By 8:40 p.m. Monday, the sewage leak was contained, with complete repairs to the sewer main anticipated by midnight, the city reported on its website. Since 8:45 a.m. Monday, vacuum trucks have been operating on-site to recover discharged sewage and were to continue running overnight to help in the cleanup and environmental recovery process.
Are there health risks?
Yes. The city says this: “Residents are still urged to avoid contact with Turkey Creek or surrounding waterways until further notice,” the city’s website warns. “This includes no fishing, boating, or swimming. However, there is no impact to the City’s drinking water supply, which remains safe and unaffected.”
The spill is likely to raise ire at the City Council’s next meeting. But Conway doesn’t hold much hope for change.
“Enforcement comes at the wrong end,” she said. “At the end, we taxpayers are going to pick up the mess. There’s no consequence, really, there’s no accountability. It’s maddening. It’s wrong.”
Contact Waymer at (321) 261-5903 or at jwaymer@floridatoday.com. Follow him on X at @JWayEnviro.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Palm Bay blames pipe failure for sewage spill
Reporting by Jim Waymer, Florida Today / Florida Today
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
