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A 2-ft. by 4-ft. steel plate is being blamed for a major blockage that allowed millions of litres of raw sewage to pour into the Ottawa River yesterday.
City crews were able to remove the heavy plate at the Keefer St. regulator site located in the vicinity of the prime minister’s home at 24 Sussex Dr. by 4 p. m. yesterday, but not before at least 6.5 million litres of raw sewage flowed into the river.
The pipe where the blockage occurred carries 20% of the city’s sewage where it’s treated at the city’s east-end waste water treatment facility.
The amount is expected to be much higher because for two hours crews had to divert 100% of the sewage flow into the river to determine where the blockage was.
Dixon Weir, the city’s director of environmental services, said this is unlike other sewage spills into the river that are triggered by rainfalls.
“I would consider it a much more significant spill,” he said, who added the city is trying to determine where the steel plate came from.
The city was first alerted to the problem when crews were dispatched to the site after arriving for their early morning shift.
The site is in the midst of heavy construction where the city is installing real time regulators that will allow the city to eventually stem the flow of sewage into the river.
The city also put its Emergency Operations Control Group on standby in case the spill couldn’t be stopped.
As a result of the spill, the city’s medical officer of health immediately closed the two beaches at Petrie Island downstream from the spill.
“It’s unwise to have full body contact with the river,” said Dr. Isra Levy.