Damaged sewage line being repaired

Friday, Feb. 4, 2005 | 10:03 a.m.

Authorities were repairing an 18-inch pipe after a Clark County contractor working in a Duck Creek flood channel Thursday caused 296,000 gallons of raw sewage to spill into the Las Vegas Wash.

After heavy rains in December and January, a crew was improving the Duck Creek flood channel, County Water Reclamation District spokesman Marty Flynn said.

A surge of "nuisance" water running down the channel from the project scraped soil supporting the sewage line and either cracked or split the pipeline, causing the spill of untreated water in the southeast valley, he said.

Water reclamation crews installed a bypass pipe that detoured the wastewater around the pipe break 75 minutes after the accident happened at about 7 a.m., Flynn said.

It will take a couple of days to repair the pipeline.

In the long term, the district and the contractor will work together to prevent another accidental pipe break while the flood-control project continues, Flynn said.

The reclamation district notified the Southern Nevada Water Authority, the Clark County Health District, the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, the National Park Service and the City of Henderson to inform them of the spill.

"Anyone downstream was notified, even though it was a small spill," Flynn said.

The spill was northeast of Boulder Highway and Russell Road, Flynn said.

The Water Authority tests drinking supplies daily, spokesman J.C. Davis said.

"We're not anticipating it will have an impact on the water quality," he said.

To be sure, the Water Authority has increased its ozonation process, which should kill any bacteria.

The contaminated runoff drops to the bottom of Boulder Basin from the Las Vegas Wash in the winter when Lake Mead's temperature is cold, Davis said.

A stream of water flowing from the wash with the wastewater in it flows through the lake like a river.

Tests of both untreated lake water and treated drinking water showed no signs of increased bacterial activity, Davis said.