Force main break leads to 1.2 million gallon sewage spill into Sarasota Bay.

Type of Notice: Initial Report
Date of Notice: 06/03/2020

Incident Information
Name of Incident: CS060220
State Watch Office Case Number: 20202887
Start of Incident: 06/02/2020 12:30
End of Incident: 06/02/2020 18:15

Incident Description
At approximately 1230 on June 2, 2020, a contractor (Pospiech Contracting) inadvertently broke a 4? force main while excavating for a construction project at the intersection of 34th Street West and 60th Avenue West in Bradenton causing the discharge of raw wastewater. The discharged wastewater flowed into storm water drains which conveyed it to a retention pond to the northeast of the intersection. A mixture of pond water/wastewater then overflowed from the pond into storm water piping that eventually flowed into Sarasota Bay. Manatee County Collections and Lift Stations staff shut off lift stations that feed the affected force main and used numerous tanker/vactor trucks to recover the discharged wastewater and also maintain the level in the collection system to minimize the additional discharge of wastewater until it could be completely stopped by 1815. The damaged force main was repaired by 2230 the same day. The final volume of the SSO discharge for this event was estimated at 1.2 million gallons with approximately 810,000 gallons of a mixture of water/wastewater flowing into the pond overflow and ultimately to Sarasota Bay. Manatee County staff have been recovering water/wastewater from the retention pond and returning it to the collection system since 2115 on June 2, 2020 in order to minimize impact on the pond and this work is ongoing. Wastewater Compliance staff are collecting analytical samples for microbiology analysis in Sarasota Bay and the retention pond to evaluate the impact of this event to surface water. Warning signs have been posted around the impacted pond and at the discharge location in Sarasota Bay and citizens possibly impacted along Sarasota Bay have been provided with door hangers warning of the potential danger of the event.

Incident Location
Facility/Installation Name: FLA012619/Southwest WRF
Address Line 1: 5101 65th Street West
Address Line 2:
Directions:
City: Bradenton
State: FL
Zip Code: 34210
Coordinates (in decimal degrees):
Lat: 27.436096, Long: -82.595928
Click to view Incident Location
Impacted Counties: Manatee
Updated Impact: Manatee

Incident Reported By
Name: Karen Briden
Title: Wastewater Compliance Superintendent
Phone: (941) 792-8811
E-mail Address: [email protected]

On-Site Contact
Name: Jacob Eiseman
Phone: (941) 792-8811
Ext: 8077
E-mail Address: [email protected]

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