Sewage spills at youth center
March 26, 2008
By Laura Geggel
A pipe clogged with rags, grit and plastics led to raw sewage spill at the Snoqualmie Valley Youth Activity Center.
The backup occurred the morning of March 22, when the clogged pipe at the City of North Bend Waste Water Treatment Plant caused waste water to swell over the pipe’s ditch.
The waste water ran across the treatment plant’s grounds and into the activity center next door. No one was in the center at the time.
The city shut off the pipes at 8:20 a.m. after they learned of the spill. The treatment plant is back in operation, but the future of the activity center is uncertain.
“Nobody is allowed in the building because of the contamination,” said John Glaser, chairman of the board for the Snoqualmie Valley Youth Activity Center Association.
Much of the sewage has been pumped out of the building, but the entire activity center remains fenced off from the public.
Many groups meet at the activity center regularly, including church groups, the Venturing Crew, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.
“It’s a place where the troop has met for 50 years,” said Boy Scout Troop Leader Doug McClelland. “We’re out of a place to meet. All of our materials and supplies on the inside may be damaged.”
McClelland was unsure where the 69 Boy Scouts would hold their weekly meetings, but Glaser speculated they would be able to use Si View Community Center. The City of North Bend is working with all three groups to help them find replacement meeting locations.
The Girl Scouts used the activity center more for storage than as a meeting place. Teresa Woods, area manager for the East King County regional office, said many Girl Scouts now meet at United Methodist Church in Snoqualmie. They lost camping gear, including tents and first aid kits, in the sewage spill.
The activity center, built in the 1960s and remodeled in the 1980s, is community run.
“Our biggest problem is losing our revenue that we get from keeping the facility going,” said Glaser, referring to the fees collected from groups and people throwing birthday parties in the Snoqualmie Valley Youth Activity Center.
According to a press release from the city of North Bend, the water treatment plant will be renovated in a 2009-10 capital improvement project. Until then, additional screens may be added to lower the risk of another clog occurring. Workers also plan to install a more rapid notification process to help prevent future spills.
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