Hurricane Hermine’s Aftermath: Sewage Flowed into Clearwater Harbor, Old Tampa Bay

CLEARWATER, FL — As the city of St. Petersburg reports it may never be able to tell just how much partially treated sewage flowed into Tampa Bay after Hurricane Hermine blew through the region, Clearwater has released its estimates.

According to the city, an estimated 28.8 million gallons of sewage overflowed into Clearwater Harbor. Another 2.9 million gallons flowed into Old Tampa Bay. The overflows occurred as heavy rains inundated the area, exceeding the sewage system’s capacity, the city wrote in an email to media.

“This resulted in the unintentional release of sewage plus rainwater at manholes where the sewers were overwhelmed,” the email said. A breakdown at the Marshall Street Water Reclamation Facility complicated matters, causing an unintentional release of sewage and rainwater to Stevenson Creek, the city noted.

The city estimates water that overflowed into the harbor and Bay was a mixture of about 75 to 80 percent rainwater that was “further diluted many times as it combined with additional rainwater and surface waters on its path to either body of water.”

Overflows such as the ones experienced in Hermine’s wake are not common in Clearwater, Public Utilities Director David Porter said in a statement.

"The amount of rainfall, the length of the storm and the mechanical failure were challenges we could not overcome,” Porter said. “We had crews working 24 hours a day during the storm installing and manning portable pumps and using pumper trucks to minimize the spills. Additionally, a complex temporary sewage pumping system was constructed, installed and placed into operation to prevent further spills."

The city is continuing to assess damage at the Marshall Street pumping station.

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