OWNA Charleston

For those who are unaware, there was raw sewage on a small stretch of Beverly Rd on Tuesday. Ron Sassard, OWNA President, contacted Mike Saia (Charleston Water System) – please see his response below. (Cleanup has been completed)…

Subject: RE: [External] Sewage Excursion on Beverly Road

Ron,

It was a root ball in a sewer main, which was fully resolved by removing it. We’ll inspect via camera to determine next steps in the next few weeks.  May need to use a chemical to deter roots from returning.

Rest assured, it’s not systemic.  We’re nowhere near wastewater collection system capacity in your area and will never be again. Our new West Ashley Sewer Tunnel solved that issue in early 2020. 

Our $135M West Ashley Sewer Tunnel Extension project, underway right now, will eliminate the last systemic issue in your area that we occasionally encounter, which is heavy wipes blockages that occur during very heavy weather events, which basically flush/knock loose all of the baby wipes that are snagged at various points in our system, which then all combine to block our bar screens at Croghan, which then backs up sewage to your neighborhood and Byrnes Downs.  New tunnel will have three separate automated screening systems (Croghan, Coburg, and Arlington Dr.), all of which combine to reduce the wipes challenge at Croghan and reduce this likelihood of back-ups/overflows by a minimum of 3x. This should be completed / on-line in 2027.

Thanks, 
Mike 

Mike Saia
Public Information Administrator
Charleston Water System