More Cracks Found in Pipe Dumping Raw Sewage Into Patapsco River

Two additional cracked sections were discovered during an inspection of a 54-inch main sewage line that ruptured on Aug. 28, allowing 17 million gallons of untreated sewage to flow daily into the Patapsco River to Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

One crack was found in a section of pre-stressed concrete pipe adjacent to the area that ruptured last weekend near the Patapsco Pumping Station on Annapolis Road in Baltimore Highlands, while the second was about 60 feet away, according to county public works spokesperson David Fidler.

Repair work on the pipe provided an opportunity to inspect the interior, leading to discovery of the cracks. "We found several areas of concern," Fidler said.

The pipe that ruptured carries half of the sewage produced by Baltimore County about four miles through the Brooklyn Park neighborhood to the Patapsco Waste Water Treatment Plant in Baltimore City.

Fidler said the 54-inch line is composed of sections of concrete made in the 1970s that has a reputation as "problem pipe" and is linked with other water and sewage line breakages in the region.

"This has shown up as problem material," he said.

However, Fidler said that there had not been problems reported with the section of pipe that ruptured last weekend. "This pipe had never failed before," he said.

Baltimore County recently spent $30 million to re-line a five-mile section of pipe upstream of the sewage pumping station in Baltimore Highlands.

Fidler said that the Department of Public Works will consider whether improvements are needed to the four-mile section from the pumping station to the waste water treatment plant.

Repairs to the three broken sections of pipe in Baltimore Highlands are expected to be completed today, according to Fidler.

By the time the line is expected to be back in operation, about 100 million gallons of sewage will have spilled into the Patapsco River.