ALPENA – On Tuesday, the City of Alpena was forced to begin depositing sewage into the Thunder Bay River due to the sewage plant inability to keep up with the influx of water and sewage intake.

Because of this situation, the sewage was partially treated but not broken down to normal standards, city officials say.

In an press release on Tuesday, City Manager Rachel Smolinski advised city and township water and sewer customers to limit the use of water that will drain into the sewer system.

“The City of Alpena Water and Sewer Department is asking all residents and businesses to continue to reduce water usage due to current conditions within the sanitary sewer collection system,” Smolinski said. “This includes all City of Alpena and Charter Township of Alpena water and sewer customers.”

The city has requested people refrain from taking long showers, doing laundry, and to limit water use over. The rainfall the area received on Monday night only exasperated the sewage issue, which resulted in the sewer system operating above capacity.

“With all the additional rainfall last night, the sewer system continues to be at surcharge conditions and operating above capacity,” Smolinski said. “While the system remains functional, all pipes are full, and wastewater is moving very slowly through the system.”

City of Alpena and Alpena Township residents and businesses are being advised to use their water sparingly to avoid backups and service disruptions.

“There is currently no additional capacity available, and continued high usage may lead to backups or service disruptions,” Smolinski explained. “If you have water in your basement and additional usage of water in your home will only add to this flooding issue.”

Alpena Township Supervisor Abbi Kaszubowski also explained the importance of limiting water usage until the issue is corrected.

“We are asking residents to be mindful of their water usage, particularly for those who are already experiencing flooding in their crawl spaces or their basement,” Kaszubowski said. “At this point there is nowhere for the water to go, any water usage is likely to end up in their basement.”

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency:

Reducing water usage during flooding alleviates pressure on overwhelmed wastewater and stormwater systems, preventing sewage backups into homes and reducing the volume of contaminated water entering local waterways.

Lowering demand prevents municipal treatment systems from exceeding capacity, reducing the risk of combined sewer overflows

Sandbags are available to the public at the City Department of Public Works facility located at 1001 Long Lake Avenue. The sandbags will be available up until 4pm inside the facility, additionally, a pallet of sandbags will be available outside, after hours.

If you need additional assistance, the City is asking that you contact the non-emergency line for central dispatch at (989) 354-9111. If you have an emergency, you are advised to call 911.