Following two sewer line breaks, thousands of gallons of raw sewage and wastewater were spilled into a creek in Smyrna, Tenn. Despite the massive spill into the creek, workers were able to prevent more than 200,000 gal of sewage before reaching the body of water.
According to Matt Church, a representative of Premier Protective Services, the total amount of sewage involved in this preventative act within the incident is likely near 257,000 gal.
“We can document 257,000 gal we were able to transport from the manholes to the Smyrna Treatment Facility,” Church said. “We don’t have an exact number, but we are for sure that we were able to contain and control the flow using damming and diking methods.”
A park and walking trail near the affected site has been closed while cleanup crews attempt to properly manage the spill. Several environmental organizations will visit the site for analysis and water samples will be taken for testing.
The cause of the sewage line breaks remains unknown.