Tropical Storm Fred May Cause Sewer Overflows, Spills In DeKalb

DEKALB COUNTY, GA — As DeKalb County and most of Georgia prepares for up to five inches of rain due to Tropical Storm Fred, county leaders are warning residents of possible sewer overflows or spills due to the rain.

DeKalb residents are asked to report any indication of overflows and spills by calling 770-270-6243, which operates 24 hours a day. The county has "a very aggressive monitoring and reporting system" that allows the county to identify spills that are not reported by the public, too.

In 2018, the county deployed electronic flow monitors to collect real-time data to locate, identify, reduce and eliminate wet weather spills as well as stormwater intrusion, a news release said. Without flow monitors, it's "extremely difficult, if not impossible" to find or mitigate spills.

“Stormwater intrusion into the sewer system is a major source of overflows and spills in our county,” DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond said.

County crews are preparing for the continued rainfall by:

• Monitoring weather predictions, including rainfall amounts and wind gusts.
• Deploying additional crews for key response and service areas, including dispatch, spill response, plant operations and maintenance and flow monitoring.
• Fueling generators, vehicles, heavy equipment and pumps.
• Ensuring sufficient warehouse stocking levels for equipment and supplies such as rain suits, gloves, face shields and saws.
• Putting existing contracted vendors on standby to provide additional needed resources and equipment.

County leaders said homeowners can reduce spills by eliminating sources such as illegal connections to sanitary sewer systems and replacing missing and broken sewer cleanout caps.

This warning comes over a week after federal and state prosecutors recommended approving an updated agreement that gives DeKalb County more time to complete necessary sewer repairs due to a lawsuit.

In 2010, state and federal environmental regulators filed a suit against DeKalb County, alleging sewer overflow violated water cleanliness regulations.

The county reached an agreement with state and federal representatives in 2011 to clean up the county sewers. However, prosecutors allege there have still been a number of spills that could potentially contaminate waterways outside of the county.

A number of spills have happened just this summer, including one on July 20 where 1 million gallons of sewage gushed out of pipes in Lithonia, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

DeKalb County now has to pay more than $1 million as a penalty for not completing repairs in the timeframe originally agreed upon, and has until December 2027 to complete repairs on its wastewater collection and transmission system. Certain projects would need to be completed by the end of 2021.

Related:

• Tropical Storm Fred Expected To Bring Flash Flooding To GA
• Sewer Fixes: Prosecutors Favor New Deal With DeKalb