BALTIMORE — Residents in the 3000 block of Ascension Street are hoping work recently done to fix a sewer problem doesn't need to be addressed again. Viewers contacted WMAR-2 News after calls to 311 went unanswered and raw sewage spewed into the roadway for days.
An hour or so after a call to Baltimore's Department of Public Works crews arrived on scene. It's a situation neighbors say they'd been trying to rectify through proper channels.
"We called on Friday," said Amanda McCray. "It's almost been a week. I feel like I was forgotten."
A lifelong resident of Cherry Hill, McCray who's in her 70's said the block is constantly having issues with city pipes, whether it be water or sewer related.
"They were just calling it water until you walked up to them," said Pamala Williams. "They said t’s not good water. They didn't even want to say the right language."
William Henderson knew what it had been running down the street for days.
"It's sad," he said. "We have filth floating near our properties. We should not just be ignoring sewer water coming down and just leave it unattended. This is similar to what happened in 2015."
Neighbors tell WMAR a sewage issue five years ago caused damage to people's homes. They don't want a repeat situation.
"My house flooded," said Pamala Williams. "As for this, children ride their bikes out here. People walk their dogs and this is what they have to run into this. It's a shame."
By 3 o'clock DPW said the issue on Ascension Street had been resolved.
In a statement the department said:
"DPW Utility Maintenance Division investigated the most recent service request received today. The investigation revealed a sewage backup caused by a blockage in the sewer main. This was not a water main break. The sewer work has been completed on the sewer main and it is currently flowing freely. There was a water main break reported on January 1, 2021, that break was repaired January 2, 2021 by a City authorized contractor. There is no known impact to water quality at this time. The water distribution pipes are separate from the sewer pipes and are also pressurized."
Neighbors, while glad the problem has been fixed, they want better accountability from the city.
"The Band-Aids is not a real solution because they shouldn’t keep happening," said Amanda McCray.
