By Robert Tomlinson
News Director
CONSTANTINE — A reported break in a force main caused yet another sewer spill Monday in the 15000 block of Gleason Road in Fabius Township.
According to Constantine Village Manager Mark Honeysett, the break was reported at 11:36 a.m., and occurred across the street from a home in the Gleason Road area.
Honeysett said in a statement it was “far too early” to estimate the flow and how much was spilled, and they arranged for a company to haul sewage.
The break and spill also caused Constantine Public Schools to close for the day on Tuesday while repairs were made. They were back in session on Wednesday.
This latest break is the latest in a vast series of spills and/or breaks that have occurred with the force main that runs between Three Rivers and Constantine. It is the third break and/or spill that has occurred in the past month on the specific main, and the fifth one that has occurred since the beginning of June.
As previously reported in the Commercial-News, in an Aug. 5 email from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), James Dykstra from EGLE’s water resources division told the village that their top priority “should be ending the sanitary sewer overflow at Gleason Road as soon as possible,” and that the “uncontrolled flow of sewage down a public roadway, through public property, and into a wetland is unacceptable.”
There has been a proposal to install a bypass line along the 900-foot section of Gleason Road, which has a monthly rental rate of $10,395. The proposal did not include the cost of excavating the stretch of the road’s shoulder to bury the line, or the cost to run it under the three driveways. No action was taken at the Aug. 19 Constantine Village Council meeting.
Robert Tomlinson can be reached at 279-7488 or robert@wilcoxnewspapers.com.
