Storms contributed to Mallard Creek sewage spill

Storms or high waters likely caused a spill that leaked at least 12,000 gallons of human sewage into Mallard Creek last week, a city official said Sunday.

Charlotte Water reported the leak on Friday. Crews discovered it during inspections of pipes and other parts of the system that are vulnerable during storms such as those that have flooded rivers and towns in the Midwest and swelled creeks throughout the Charlotte region after days of rain.

Inspectors found a broken above-ground pipe at the point of the spill, near the 9200 block of Emerald Cove Drive in the University City area, Charlotte Water spokesman Cam Coley said. The pipe extends over the creek. Repairs were completed on Sunday afternoon.

Above-ground pipes are more vulnerable because tree branches and limbs can fall on them. Fast-moving creek water can carry debris that also can cause damage.

“In this case something hit that pipe and broke it,” Coley said.

The pipe carries waste from multiple neighborhoods to a treatment plant near North Tryon Street and Interstate 485. The city is working to replace above-ground sewage pipes, but this one remains on the to-do list.

Crews plugged the pipe and created a temporary pipe and pump system using manholes on each side of the creek until repairs could be made.

Charlotte Water’s system includes more than 8,000 miles of pipe that is used to transport drinking water and wastewater in separate systems. The utility provides roughly 100 million gallons of drinking water a day and treats about 80 million gallons of human wastewater.

This story was originally published January 3, 2016 at 1:13 PM with the headline "Storms contributed to Mallard Creek sewage spill."