Florence crews clean after 150,000-gallon sewer overflow

Florence city crews are cleaning the site of a 150,000-gallon sewer overflow that ran into Jeffries Creek, according to a city press release.

The overflow, reported around 8 a.m. Thursday, came from a manhole in the swamp between the north end of Rollins Avenue and the run of Jeffries Creek, the city announced Friday.

Crews had cleared the blockage that caused th overflow by 6:30 p.m. Thursday. They are now cleaning visible solids at the discharge site and using lime to disinfect the affected area.

“Water samples have been taken, and are being analyzed, to document that there was no threat to public health or the environment,” the city’s press release states.

Following rains from Tropical Storm Hanna last month, the city responded to a 10,000-gallon sewer overflow into Middle Swamp and Jeffries Creek. The incident wasn’t thought to be a hazard to public health or the environment, the city reported.

The city reported the overflow as part of a S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control program to notify the public of wastewater discharges of 5,000 gallons or more.