Big game could cause flushing problems due to sinkhole
MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. (WJBK) - The Big Game on Sunday could lead to a huge environmental problem on Lake St. Clair. That's where Macomb County is discharging raw sewage when this damaged sewer line in Fraser.
That line is overwhelmed by water consumption and drainage and that could spike on Sunday.
FOX 2: "How much are you hoping and praying Lady Gaga has an amazing halftime performance Sunday?"
"Well I'm sure she's going to be terrific, I'm going to be watching it," said Candice Miller, Macomb County's drain commissioner.
Here's to Lady Gaga keeping people in their seats at halftime and off the porcelain one. Macomb County is hoping people in the 11 communities impacted by the sewer collapse and sinkhole in Fraser will keep their bathroom breaks to a minimum during halftime, aka 'the super flush.'
"I don't want to get too personal with people here but I would just ask them to use their common sense and try to restrict their water usage as much as they possibly can," Miller said.
It is a possibility that human excrement ends up in the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair on super Sunday - or it is already there. One picture posted on the Save Lake St. Clair Facebook group Tuesday shows raw sewage in the water.
It's very much a preview of what will happen if residents don't take the water restriction serious on Sunday.
"We don't want to dump discharge, raw sewage, into the Clinton River," said Miller. "We have an 11-foot diameter interceptor with about one foot of flow that can get through there and so heavy water usage is really a problem for us."
Even if people lay off the toilet bowl, the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair still may not be in the clear. Rain and a decent thaw are on the way Tuesday.
"If we have a heavy rain or a lot of snow in the subsequent melt, we just can't handle it.," Miller said.
No toilet flushing in this story took place in any of the 11 communities affected by the sewer collapse and sinkhole near Fraser. None of the sports bars FOX 2 spoke with in the area will be installing porta-potties for the big game.
The water restriction will remain in place for about a month that's when an additional sewer line will be up and running replacing a damaged sewer line.