January 2020 Vol. 75 No. 1
Newsline
Sewer Blockage Pushes Waste Into 300 New York City Homes
A blocked sewer main flooded basements last month with brown filth and left residents in the neighborhood near New York City’s Kennedy Airport feeling sickened by the stench.
A water condition caused the backup, pushing human waste into about 300 homes in Jamaica, Queens, officials said.
Officials have a culprit in mind: cooking grease that’s been poured down the drain.
It tends to congeal into big masses that slow or stop the flow of sewage, leaving it no place to go but back up the pipes. In some places around the world , the grease balls have gotten so enormous they’ve been described as “fatbergs.”
“This time of year we get a lot of grease blockages in sewers from residents that discharge grease,” city environmental protection chief Vincent Sapienza told reporters. “We’re under the assumption that it’s that.”
Mayor Bill de Blasio said crews were making repairs and bringing in pumping equipment to clear up the mess.
The city’s water agency says drinking water is safe and unaffected, but de Blasio advised residents to reduce usage to cut down on water going into the blocked main.
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