Several sewage spills attributed to heavy rain, king tides around Kitsap

Four sewage spills were reported around Kitsap County in the past several days as storm systems brought heavy rain to the area, leading the county's health district to advise people to avoid exposure to Liberty Bay and Sinclair Inlet.

The largest spill was reported by Port Orchard Public Works on Tuesday, which let Kitsap Public Health District extend its no-contact advisory issued that affects Sinclair Inlet through next week.

Jeff Heglund, Operations Manager at Port Orchard Public Works, said the sewage overflow started at 11 a.m. and ended at 11:45 a.m. at a lift station on Bay Street at the Port Orchard Marina. About 120,000 gallons of combined stormwater and sewage spilled out as heavy rain and king tides hit the area, Heglund said.

Extra water brought by the storm and tides poured into the city's sewer manholes. The volume of the water was more than what the sewer pump station could handle, Heglund said.

"We end up having an overflow and that goes directly to the sound," Heglund said.

The Kitsap Public Health District extended a no-contact advisory to Sinclair Inlet through Jan. 3, advising people not to contact with water in the area, including activities such as swimming, wading or other recreational activities that could get water into one's mouth, nose or eyes. The agency suggested people who have been exposed to the water wash immediately with soap and clean water.

The advisory for Sinclair Inlet was originally issued by the agency after the Navy reported a sewage spill that affected the waterway on December 24, according to the health district.

Due to a massive influx of rain and snowmelt, about 28,000 gallons of domestic wastewater, storm water and snowmelt flowed from a sanitary sewer lift station at Naval Base Kitsap, Bremerton through its emergency overflow pipe to Sinclair Inlet that morning, said Joe Kubistek, a spokesperson at Naval Base Kitsap.

The Navy received the overflow alarm at 10:19 a.m. Naval Facilities Engineering Command Public Works were dispatched to the lift station and stopped the overflow at 11:24 a.m., Kubistek said.

Heavy rain on Tuesday also caused a sewage overflow at a Poulsbo city's sewer interceptor on Highway 305, reported by Poulsbo Public Works, Poulsbo Public Works Superintendent Mike Lund said.

About 2,000 gallons of combined sewage water and stormwater overflowed the pipes at around 9 a.m. and the spill was controlled at noon, Lund said.

"When we have these high rain events, the sewer system gets a lot more fluid in it than just sewer," Lund said. "So sometimes it backs up and overflows off the top, that was what happened here today (Tuesday)."

KPHD issued a no-contact advisory for Liberty Bay through Jan. 3.

The health district has already issued a no-contact advisory for the entrance to Liberty Bay, the area of Keyport, the east shoreline of Kitsap Peninsula from Sandy Hook to Aquila Place and the west shoreline of Bainbridge Island from Seabold to Battle Point for a sewage spill of 65,000 gallons reported by Kitsap County Public Works on Dec. 26, according to the health district. The advisory for that affected area will end on Jan. 2.

The story was updated since it was first published to add additional information about the sewage spill at Naval Base Kitsap, Bremerton.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Several sewage spills attributed to heavy rain around Kitsap