An estimated 84,000 gallons of sewage spilled into a low-lying area on Camp Lejeune because of issues related to Hurricane Florence, base officials said.
The spillage was discovered at 12: 30 p.m. Monday, Camp Lejeune spokesman Nat Fahy said. He said the Sanitary Sewer Overflow reporting form indicates that officials didn’t know when the spill started.
The wastewater spill pooled in a low-lying area near the intersection of Julian C. Smith Street and L. Street. It was caused by a loss of power to the lift station during Hurricane Florence and an increased amount of rainfall that caused the low-lying area to overflow, officials stated in a press release. Lift stations pump sewage from a lower elevation to a higher elevation.
Officials estimated that about 42,000 gallons of the sewage water overflowed from that low-lying area through a storm ditch and entered the New River.
Personnel from Public Works Division have removed all the remaining sewage water from that area on base and disinfected the surrounding area.
Base officials and the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources have taken water samples and are awaiting results.
Base officials have confirmed the sewage spill poses no threat to the residential water supply, according to the release.
Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.
