South Fulton County

18M+ gallons of raw sewage spill from two creeks in South Fulton

SOUTH FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — More than 18 million gallons of raw sewage overflowed from two creeks in South Fulton, and environmental authorities said the spill was the worst in the state in more than five years.

The foul-smelling flow started when a concrete sewer pipe collapsed and then another pipe broke. That led to the two creeks spilling the raw sewage.

"My Lord. That's a lot of spill," homeowner Harriett Dawson said. "That's not good."

Dawson, a cancer patient, called Channel 2 Action News in January when the foul odor took over her Brookstone subdivision and left her holding her nose inside her home.

"It's affecting my breathing," Dawson said.

Channel 2's Tom Jones learned four of the largest wastewater spills in the state in the last year happened in Fulton County.

"We don't normally have so many spills," said David E. Clark, the director of Fulton County Public Works. Clark said the problems all began when a sewer pipe burst on Christmas Eve.

"The concrete pipe collapsed under the weight of the saturated soil," Clark said.

The same thing happened to a sewer pipe on the Ring Power Crane property. Clark blames too much rain and sulfuric acid that weakens the concrete pipes.

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It led to the 18 million gallon wastewater spill at the Morning creek and White Water creek pumping stations.

"Well it's certainly something we're not proud of. Something we're looking to fix as quickly as we can," Clark said.

The department is installing new pipes with greater structural integrity.

Dawson is worried about the impact the spills have on her health. "That's not healthy."

Clark said the rain is holding up the start of construction at the Pine Valley location. Once the rain lets up, the repairs will start.

They've added a chemical to a pumping station to help with the odor. The county will face fines for the spills.