It is unfortunate that this spill occurred, especially at a time of year that is meant to be a celebration. We offer our apologies to Mr. Davis, as we would to any customer who is affected by a sanitary sewer overflow.
While a spill that impacts a customer’s property directly happens on rare occasions, we strive to limit the inconvenience it may cause. Each time our staff was alerted to a potential sanitary sewer overflow at the customer’s property, our crews responded in less than 3 hours. For the only sanitary sewer overflow they were able to confirm, staff quickly cleared the blockage, treated his property, and determined the cause of the overflow. As part of our standard follow-up, staff investigated the area and identified two issues unrelated to the original complaint. They then followed the standard protocols to schedule the repairs needed to prevent theses minor flaws from causing future problems.
I have spoken with Mr. Davis personally and conveyed my apologies to him and his family for the December 24th spill and the inconvenience he has experienced as we performed the other unrelated work on the sewer main running through his backyard. We at Columbia Water treat all of our customers with respect, and we will respond and do the right thing every time. We pride ourselves on our customer service and in being best in class at providing safe drinking water and dependable storm water and wastewater services.
Sincerely,
Clint Shealy, PE
Assistant City Manager for Columbia Water