MWA: Heavy rains cause major sewage spills in Macon

Fifteen major sewer spills across town, one totaling more than 1 million gallons, are the result of recent heavy rainfall, Macon Water Authority officials said Tuesday.

More than 1.2 million gallons of sewage spilled from a manhole on Industrial Way off Emery Highway about 8 a.m. last Wednesday, according to MWA spokeswoman Heather Veal. The spill, which was near Boggy Branch, continued until Sunday morning.

Ray Shell, executive vice president of field operations for the authority, said spills more than 1 million gallons occur about every three to five years.

"As long as it keeps raining, this could go on," Shell said. "We'll probably have to see several days of no rain before (the spills) completely go away because the ground is saturated with water now."

Among the other major sewage spills from last Wednesday:

More than 97,000 gallons of sewage spilled from a manhole on Lower Poplar Street downtown.

More than 156,000 gallons of sewage spilled from a manhole in the 100 block of Covington Court, which is near Zebulon and Forsyth roads in north Macon.

More than 57,000 gallons of sewage spilled from a manhole on Broadway Street.

The affected areas were cleaned up and treated with lime.

The MWA also has projects planned to rehabilitate two large sewer interceptors that feed the treatment plant on Lower Poplar Street.

To contact writer Laura Corley, call 744-4334 or follow her on Twitter @Lauraecor.

This story was originally published December 29, 2015 at 9:30 PM with the headline "MWA: Heavy rains cause major sewage spills in Macon ."