WILMINGTON — Cape Fear Public Utility Authority’s plant off River Road has reported a wastewater spill, as result of Hurricane Florence.
Cape Fear Public Utility Authority (CFPUA) did not state the volume of the spill, which was caused by generator failures. However, utilities in North Carolina are required by state law to report sewage spills that exceed 1,000 gallons of untreated wastewater into surface waters.
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According to CFPUA, the failure of two generators, activated after Hurricane Florence caused widespread power failures, occurred at the Southside Wastewater Treatment Plant at 3436 River Road sometime Friday.
“At this time, we do not have an estimate because the generator would have powered the meters that monitor and record the flow,” Peg Hall-Williams, CFPUA’s spokesperson, wrote in an email.
The partially untreated wastewater is expected to flow into to Cape Fear River from the plant’s River Road location. CFPUA reported the spill to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) hotline. According to CFPUA, the wastewater was “partially treated.”
The utility became aware of the generator failure at 6:40 a.m. Friday, Hall-Williams said. Due to hazardous weather conditions, CFPUA could not perform repairs to the system until after wind speeds dropped below 50 mph.
By 4:20 p.m. Friday, the bypass stopped, and service was restored at 11:45 p.m. according to Hall-Williams.
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