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Rain brings more overflow issues

Posted at 5:49 PM, Sep 11, 2018
and last updated 2018-09-11 19:21:12-04

Another rainy morning, and more sewage pours from a manhole on Hewit Drive, and it’s not the first time we’ve seen it.

In June, 250,000 gallons of sewage leaked into Corpus Christi Bay.  Last weeks rains brought more overflow, but not nearly as much.

“We’ve got some infiltration inflow problems in that particular Hewit Drive location,” said Assistant Utilities Director for Wastewater John Byrum last week.

Byrum also said that last week’s overflow was caused by a “mechanical plug”.  But later in the same interview, Byrum had a different answer to why people on Hewit complain about sewage every time it rains.

“When you get a lot of rain we catch a lot of inflow and it just overcomes the capacity of the system,” said Byrum.  “It will seek the lowest place to overflow, and that’s the Hewit Drive area.”

A mechanical plug, or lowest point?  When contacted by KRIS 6 News Tuesday to clarify, Byrum wasn’t available.

Meanwhile, other parts of the city have similar issues.  Tuesday morning a manhole cover floated away on Staples near Swatner.

“That will happen when you have these rains, the pressure just builds on these manhole covers,” said Mayor Joe McComb.  “Heavy as they are, water under pressure will push it off of there.”

The good news?  City crews make storm and waste water line repairs as part of street construction.  However, there’s a long way to go.

“We’re making progress on it,” said McComb.

As part of that interview last week, Byrum said the city is working toward getting the waste water lines sealed, but the Hewit Dr. area is about three to four years away from getting relief.