Sewer overflow near Rivers Edge subdivision

Wilmington, NC (WWAY) — Late Sunday evening, Cape Fear Public Utility Authority (CFPUA) crews responded to a sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) involving overflowing manholes in the vicinity of Pump Station #36, located at 401 Longmeadow Drive near the Rivers Edge subdivision in Wilmington.

The SSO began at 11:30 p.m. on Sunday, October 9, 2016. Upon arriving on the scene, CFPUA crews discovered two pumps at the station had temporarily stopped working. The pumps were returned to service at 12:30 a.m., which ended the overflow at 12:40 a.m. on Monday, October 10, 2016.

While the overflow from the individual manholes was considered to be minor, the combined overflow from the manholes was estimated at 1,750 gallons of diluted wastewater. The overflow was found to have entered storm drains that run into a tributary of Barnards Creek. However, because the overflow was relatively small in size and was diluted by runoff following Hurricane Matthew, water quality testing is not being required by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.

CFPUA operates and maintains two wastewater treatment plants, more than 140 pump stations, and nearly 1,000 miles of sewer mains within the City of Wilmington and most of New Hanover County.