Sometime between 5 and 7:30 p.m. the night of Tuesday Aug. 4, the SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project suffered a sewage spill of 15,000 gallons to 20,000 gallons of “untreated liquid effluent” along State Route 179 near the Hillside Sedona shopping center, according to a press release from the city of Sedona.
The press release about the spill was issued at 6:12 p.m., Aug. 5, roughly 24 hours after the incident.
The SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project is currently under construction from the Schnebly Hill Road roundabout to Hillside Sedona.
Residents and passersby reported untreated liquid effluent coming out of a manhole in front of the Hillside Sedona shopping center and flowing into a storm drain which then drained into Oak Creek approximately 750 feet downstream from the State Route 179 bridge over Oak Creek.
City officials estimated that approximately 15,000 gallons to 20,000 gallons of untreated liquid effluent spilled into Oak Creek.
The spill was contained and disinfected around 8:30 p.m. that same evening. Kinney Construction Services, the contractor for the construction project, is responsible for the accidental spill.
The volume of effluent translates to approximately 150 gallons per minute, the city stated, adding that for comparison, Oak Creek’s rate of flow is 13,000 gallons per minute.
The immediately affected areas of the creek have been cordoned off with yellow caution tape.
The city of Sedona and Kinney Construction Services have commenced water quality tests both upstream and downstream of the spill area. Soil tests will be taken in the spill vicinity.
The city of Sedona expects to receive test results in approximately 24 hours that will be sent to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, city officials stated.
In the statement, the city said it will continue working closely with ADEQ to develop additional steps that may be needed to remediate the spill.
Kinney Construction Services is hand-delivering information on this spill to residents and businesses with direct creek access located downstream from the spill, city officials stated. Other public notices have been placed at trailheads and areas where people frequently access Oak Creek.
As a result of this incident, work has been temporarily suspended as the contractor develops a plan to ensure that a spill does not occur again and to safely continue moving forward with the utility installation project, city officials stated. The contractor will continue to make every attempt to complete work along State Route 179 as soon as possible.
The city will continue to keep the community informed as new information becomes available.
For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, visit sr179sewermainreplacement. com. To contact a project team member with questions regarding this event, email news@sr179sewermainreplacement.com or call the Project Hotline at 852-4164.
