Clean-up under way following sewage spill

A damaged pipe led to one of the worst sewage spills a long-time Watercare manager has ever seen, over Auckland Anniversary weekend.

Raw sewage leaked from a large sewerage pipe in Alma Rd in the early hours of January 28, flooding 13 properties and forcing the evacuation of five homes. A health warning was put in place at nearby Milford beach.

Watercare wastewater transmission manager Chris Harbour said, in his more than 25 years’ experience, this is one of the worst wastewater spills he has seen.

‘‘I have certainly seen much bigger pipes than this one break but, in terms of impact on residents, unfortunately, this is one of the worst incidents I’ve dealt with,’’ Harbour said.

The sewage flooded inside four homes and the gardens or grounds of the other nine.

Following the event, two houses in Alma Rd required interior commercial cleaning. A third and fourth properties required additional cleaning underneath the homes.

Watercare was helping residents to organise professional cleaning, including a ‘‘hydro-vac’’ to deal with the hard-to-reach areas.

All residents, apart from the two worst-flooded households, were returned to their properties by Sunday night.

Repairs to the Alma Rd wastewater pump station has been operating normally since 6pm on January 28.

Investigations into the cause of the breakage are ongoing but it is believed that possible third party damage, may be to blame.

‘‘This was a strong concrete pressure pipe. These pipes don’t typically corrode because they are 100 per cent full during normal operating conditions, with no

‘‘In terms of impact on residents, unfortunately, this is one of the worst incidents I've dealt with’’

Chris Harbour

access to air.

‘‘Therefore that leads us to believe that the pipe has been damaged at some stage, creating a weakness, leading to the pipe blowing out,’’ says Harbour.

Safeswim technical lead Dr Martin Neale said water quality tests show that Milford’s water quality remains below recommended guidelines for swimming.

‘‘We will continue collecting daily water samples and providing updates via the Safeswim website,’’ Neale said.

SUPPLIED Watercare workers spend their anniversary weekend fixing a damaged pipe in Milford.