Sewage Incident in Arcata

A new hazardous materials incident involving sewage has been reported to the California Office of Emergency Services.

According to a report published by the office, the incident took place at or near waterways in Arcata at around 6 a.m. yesterday.

About 2,100 gallons of sewage were released to the environment, according to the person who called in the report.

Here’s the description of the incident that was recorded by the Office of Emergency Services:

Per the Reporting Party: Temporary influent pumps were unable to keep up with the high flow due to heavy rain causing a material release via an man hole impacting asphalt surface to the street. From there 1,575 gallons then flowed into a nearby treatment marsh area with the remaining 525 gallons flowing into another marsh that is tidally influenced. The release was stopped with in 7 hours of the start. The material has dissipated with the rains and will be unrecoverable.

This was the fifth hazardous materials incident recorded by the Office of Emergency Services in the Arcata area this year and the 26th sewage spill in the county overall.