Sewage headed for Clinton River after Fraser sewer line unable to handle rain

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Tuesday's relentless rain is bad news for folks in Fraser and neighboring communities.

The damaged sewer line linked to that massive sinkhole can't handle the extra water, and that means raw sewage is headed for the Clinton River.

About 300,000 people in Macomb County will be checking their basements -- many worried that flushing during halftime at the Super Bowl would be the cause of a sewage overflow.

That didn't happen, but now Tuesday's rains gave residence another sewage scare. 

"I live here in Frasier and it's raining and they're saying watch out because all this rain is going to back up the sewage system," Fraser resident Linda Pannecouk said.

However, Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candace Miller said with just about a half inch of rain in 3 hours, and a little luck, no disaster.

"We have a little bit of wiggle room and if it stops raining, we'll be OK for the night," she said.

Without getting super technical, the scare had to do with whether pipes could handle disposing of raw sewage and rainwater. 

The underground pipe, or interceptor, that collapsed along 15 Mile on Christmas Eve, was 11 feet in diameter.

The replacement pipes were only 32 inches.

These new, temporary, but long-term pipes will hopefully fix the immediate problem of sewage and water drainage.