Salem, Oregon – Salem’s officials are alerting people about a big sewage leak that happened recently. Almost 50,000 gallons of untreated sewage ended up in three local water bodies. This happened because of heavy rain and melting snow.
On Thursday, the first leak occurred. Around 22,000 gallons of sewage flowed into the Willamette River from a known overflow spot at Union and Church Street.
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After this, two more leaks happened. One was caused by blockages from grease and rags in three manholes, releasing about 24,335 gallons into Shelton Ditch. The other leak let 306 gallons of sewage into Pringle Creek, happening at a place already marked for engineering work.
During these incidents, Salem’s sewage treatment plants were overloaded due to the weather.
Warning signs are now up near the affected rivers and creeks. They tell people to stay away because the water might have a lot of harmful bacteria.
City workers are keeping an eye on things and testing the water. They’ll do this until they’re sure it’s safe again.
They’ve managed to stop all the sewage leaks for now.