Worcester officials say 879,000 gallons of sewage flowed into Blackstone River
“Overflows such as this can happen during rainfall events as many as five to 25 times per year.”
Worcester officials told people to avoid the Blackstone River for 48 hours after hundreds of thousands of gallons of sewage flowed into the river early Thursday morning.
The city’s Department of Public Works and Parks sent out an email notification stating that the overflow occurred at 4:23 a.m. behind the Walmart on Tobias Boland Way, and 879,000 gallons of untreated or partially treated sewage and waste was discharged into the river. The areas of the river potentially affected by the overflow are in Worcester, Millbury, Sutton and Grafton, officials said.
“Avoid contact with the affected water bodies for 48 hours after the overflow ceases due to increased health risks from bacteria and other pollutants,” the notification said. The overflow ended at 5:03 a.m., the notification said. The overflow that happened Thursday morning came from the city’s combined sewer system, which collects both sewage and storm water that gets treated before it’s discharged to the Blackstone River. Combined sewer overflows can happen during heavy or prolonged rains, according to the city’s Department of Public Works and Parks website.
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