SEWER BREACH MAKES PART OF LITTLE MIAMI OFF LIMITS
Health officials are FOSTER — advising people not to enter or fish in the Little Miami River south of Old 3C Highway in Warren County until a sewer breach has been repaired.
The breach occurred about 10 a.m. Wednesday, when a contractor doing road work on Socialville-Foster Road hit a sewer main and damaged a 24-inch line, according to Chris Brausch, the county’s sanitary engineer and director of the county water and sewer department.
Despite the damage, some sewage continues to flow to the nearby sewage treatment plant, but some is leaking out and into Simpson Creek, which leads into the Little Miami River.
“We’re still working on it, ”Brausch said at 2 p.m. Thursday.
Brausch was unsure how much sewage was making its way into the river.
“This a challenging repair, probably one of the more challenging
repairs the county has faced,” Brausch said.
“Our hope is we have it repaired within 24 hours.”
About 4:15 p.m. Wednesday, county health officials alerted the public about the breach in the area of Socialville-Foster Road and Old 3C Highway and health advisory.
“As a precautionary measure, the Warren County Health District will be conducting testing of the Little Miami River to identify potential increases in bacteria,” according to the release.
On Thursday morning, there was no one on the section of river flowing under a bridge west of Maineville and north of Loveland Park, near Foster.
There are increased health risks associated with coming into contact with the untreated wastewater. Parasites, viruses and bacteria can cause a range of conditions including diarrhea, dysentery, gastroenteritis and hepatitis A.
“Swallowing a small amount of contaminated wastewater or having contaminated wastewater come in contact with an open wound, may make you sick. The symptoms can range from mild to severe,” according to the release issued by Health Commissioner Duane Stansbury and Medical Director Dr. Scott Swope.