14.5 million gallons of sewage dumped into Quincy Bay
As the governor declared a state of emergency, the MWRA dumped approximately 14.5 million gallons of untreated sewage into Quincy Bay on Monday as the unrelenting rain storm threatened to back up the sewerage system and flood Houghs Neck.
"We're not out of the woods yet," spokeswoman Ria Convery said at 6 p.m.
The first "controlled bypass" was conducted about 1:30 p.m. for half an hour, releasing an estimated 8 million gallons of raw sewage and rain water from an outflow half a mile offshore. A second bypass took place from 3:50 p.m. to 4:10 p.m., dumping an additional 6.5 million gallons, Convery said.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence - a 25- to 50-year storm," said MWRA Executive Director Frederick Laskey. "This is the storm from hell."
Laskey said the agency's permits allow for such a "controlled release" in dire circumstances that threaten widespread backups. He said workers waited until the sewage at the Nut Island plant started to back up over the floorboards.
"If it had continued to rise, it would have destroyed the station," Laskey said.
A second bypass might be necessary tonight if flow volume does not subside.
The sewer system runs from Framingham to Quincy, where the Nut Island plant partially filters the waste before pumping it beneath the harbor to the Deer Island treatment plans.
"Obviously it's unfortunate. The general feeling of the city is it's better to do what they did than have it back up into people's home," Chris Walker, a spokesman for Mayor Thomas Koch, said.
Nut Island has a daily capacity of 400 million gallons.
Laskey said the state Department of Environmental Protection and the federal Environmental Protection Agency has been notified.
"The strategy is to protect the homes and neighborhoods and to protect the station," he said, adding, "This is in the best interest of the public health and the environment."
The storm flooded basements and highways, and knocked down trees and power lines throughout the state. Monday afternoon, Gov. Deval Patrick declared a state of emergency in response to the widespread damage and destruction. With the declaration, Patrick can mobilize National Guard units and have more options for receiving federal aid and dispersing assistance to communities around the state.
The storm hit hard locally. Furnace Brook Parkway in Quincy, for instance, was closed because of flooding.
"We're underwater," Quincy Firefighter Matt Keenan said. "Everything is underwater."
Quincy firefighters rescued a woman from her car after she drove into a flooded parking garage in an apartment complex at 40 Willard St. And at least a dozen homes in West Quincy were evacuated Sunday because of flooding.
"We used boats to get eight people out of two houses on Sheldon Street. There was at least 5 feet of water. One guy told us that his cellar stairs floated as the water rose toward the first floor," Deputy Fire Chief Paul Griffith said.
As of 6 a.m. Monday, the storm had dumped 5.95 inches of rain on the South Shore, according to the Blue Hill Observatory in Milton.
Reporters Amy Littlefield and Maria Papadopoulos contributed to this report. John P. Kelly may be reached at jkelly@ledger.com .
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