LAUDERHILL, Fla. – Lauderhill residents Wednesday were walking around with grocery bags on their shoes to protect against raw sewage flooding the streets.
Contractors were pumping the water out and working to make the necessary repairs after a 30-inch sewer main broke around 11 a.m. Wednesday.
Sky 10 video captured streets full of raw sewage after the main break on NW 55th Avenue and NW 24th Street.
“It’s very unsanitized, and I just don’t like it,” said Gerri Johnson, who lives nearby.
Residents endured the foul smell and watched as water gushed into the air.
“The water was rising and just water and bugs were everywhere,” Johnson said. “I thought my house was going to be flooded.”
Drinking water is still safe to consume, however, the city has issued a water advisory and asks Lauderhill residents west of the Florida Turnpike to minimize their usage of tap water and the number of times they flush the toilet to reduce pressure on the sewer system.
The city doesn’t know what caused sewer main break, but contractors were able to stop the leak and re-route the flow of sewage. Today, they’ll be patching up the ruptured main, but there’s no timeline for a permanent repair.
“I hope they hurry up and fix it,” resident Lee Pitts said.
Two residents at Inverness Village live so close to the main break that authorities told them it’s not safe to be here for the rest of the day and made arrangements for them to stay somewhere else.