Rainstorms help flush away sewage that flowed into Elkhorn Creek

The levels of sewage in Elkhorn Creek have decreased, making it safe for people to wade and boat in the Scott County waterway once again.

Michael Hennigan, director of the Georgetown-Scott County Emergency Management Agency, said Friday that bacteria levels had decreased by more than 75 percent since the spill last Saturday, when an estimated 100,000 gallons of raw sewage flowed into the creek.

He said rain and the passage of time resolved the problem.

“The two rainstorms helped us out quite a bit,” Hennigan said.

Hennigan had said on Facebook earlier in the week that “the cracks in the pipe that caused the release were not large enough to allow solids out,” and that the only solution was to wait for the contaminated water to wash away.

The level of contamination in the water right after the spill was about 3,900 parts per 100 milliliters, he said. On Friday, Hennigan said, the levels were testing at 350 to 400 parts per 100 milliliters, which is well below the Division of Water’s recommendation that levels be under 1,200 parts per 100 milliliters.

He said those levels “are some of the best bacteria numbers we’ve had in months if not years.”

He said the problem was contained to the area between Dover and Oser Landing, and no areas further downstream had been affected.

Hennigan said it’s unclear what caused the crack in the pressurized sewer line last Saturday.

The Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet said earlier that the Georgetown waste water treatment plant had “estimated that the leak was intermittently pumping 600 gallons per minute for approximately 12 hrs” before it was discovered on Saturday.

The treatment plant “reported pressure and influent anomalies” beginning at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, and the leak was reported by Scott County Emergency Management at about 5 p.m., the cabinet said.

Hennigan said Friday that the fact that the spill occurred during a holiday weekend might have kept it from being detected sooner.

“I don’t think that the monitoring system was being watched as closely as it would” during the regular workweek, he said.

He said the spill was reported when “a kayaker floating by saw something flowing into the creek and called 911.”