Cobb sues builder of south Cobb tunnel over 'catastrophic' 2018 spill

Chart Riggall, Marietta Daily Journal, Ga.
Updated ·2 min read

Feb. 14—MARIETTA — Cobb County has sued the contractors behind the largest water system project in county history, alleging their negligence led to a "massive and catastrophic failure" of a wastewater facility in 2018.

The county's lawsuit — which seeks at least $39 million — accuses contractors J.F. Shea and Traylor Brothers of faulty welding in the construction of the sewage pumping facility.

A 200-foot deep concrete shaft, the structure sits near the Chattahoochee River in south Cobb and pumps waste from a huge underground tunnel up to the county's treatment plant.

J.F. Shea and Traylor Brothers — two of the country's largest construction firms, who completed the project under the joint venture Shea-Traylor — were hired in 2008 to construct both the pumping facility and the nearly 6-mile tunnel, and awarded a contract worth $305 million.

Construction lasted nearly a decade, and was completed in February 2018.

But the failure of the project happened less than a year later. On Dec. 30, 2018, per the county's lawsuit, a cover for one of the gates separating the wells from the tunnel system "suddenly ruptured and exploded upward."

The result was that liquid sewage flooded the pump chamber, spilling "a combination of rainwater, creek water, and untreated wastewater" into nearby Nickajack Creek, the county said at the time. The volume of the spill was some 113 million gallons.

It took the county months to clear out the pump facility, the lawsuit says. The county alleges the failure was directly attributable to faulty welding and that Shea-Traylor hasn't helped with the cleanup or remediation efforts.

To support that assertion, the county included the findings of an independent investigation by Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates. An engineer who examined the site found "Shea-Traylor's negligent and improper welding and the resulting poor weld quality" was the primary cause of the failure.

Cobb has retained Atlanta law firm Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton to represent the county in the litigation. Alleging breach of contract, the county is seeking $39 million in damages along with legal fees.

John Mastin, an attorney with law firm Smith Currie, is identified as Shea-Traylor's attorney in the lawsuit, and did not respond to a request for comment.