VALDOSTA – The City of Valdosta, located in one of the 56 counties in which Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal declared a State of Emergency, was hit by Tropical Storm Hermine on Sept. 1-2.

One of the biggest storms to travel directly over Valdosta, the storm dumped approximately 7 inches of rain in a 4-hour period and included sustained winds of approximately 65 mph resulting in hundreds of downed trees and power lines.

The city employs generators in the event of power outages at city facilities. During Tropical Storm Hermine, generators or alterative power sources were used to restore power at three VFD stations, at the water treatment plant and at both wastewater treatment plants. While it is not a normal occurrence to employ all generators at the same time, every city generator was placed into service during the storm to sustain city services during the power outages.

A storm of Hermine’s magnitude even two years ago would have resulted in millions of gallons of sewer spilled and major cleanup efforts. Due to the improvements made to the city’s sewer collection system, these overflows were minimized during the recent storm event and are primarily the result of power outages and an act of nature. Furthermore, the city experienced no violations at the Water Treatment Plant or either of the city’s wastewater treatment plants.

“It is rare to have a storm that results in as many power outages as we had during this storm; and it is not the fault of anyone, but merely an act of nature. Thousands of trees are down and many of these have affected power lines and many are difficult to access in the conditions presented today,” said Utilities Director Henry Hicks.” The overflows that the city experienced on account of Tropical Storm Hermine were relatively small and primarily all outside of our—or anyone’s—control. In a few cases, major rainfall flowed over the tops of manholes that caused inflow of rain water into the sewer system, then resulted in a manhole overflow—a result of the excess rains, not the system.”

As of 3 p.m. today, the following overflows of combined sewer and stormwater were identified by Utilities Department staff at the following locations.

· An overflow in the 1300 block of N. Lee Street spilled an estimated 45,000 gallons into One Mile Branch. This flow was caused by the massive amounts of rain that was received during the storm which caused the Lee Street retention pond to overflow onto a nearby manhole. This flows has stopped.

· An overflow in the 4100 block of Bemiss Road spilled an estimated 2,000 gallons into Cherry Creek. This flow has stopped.

· An overflow in the 800 block of Gornto Road spilled an estimated 1,150 gallons into Two Mile Branch. This flow has stopped.

· An overflow in the 2400 block of Gornto Road spilled an estimated 117,000 gallons into the Withlacoochee River. This flow has stopped.

· An overflow in the 1,900 block of East Park Avenue spilled an estimated 55,000 gallons into the Mud Creek. This flow has stopped.

· An overflow at the Hwy 94 Lift Station spilled an estimated 1,300 gallons into in the Withlacoochee River. This flow has stopped.

· An overflow in the 1,300 block of North Ashley Street is spilling an estimated 225 GPM into the One Mile Branch.

· An overflow in the 1,300 block of N. Lee Street is spilling an estimated 150 GPM into the One Mile Branch.

City staff is monitoring and testing the waters and disinfecting the surrounding areas. All appropriate regulatory and public health agencies have been notified, and warning signs have been posted at the spill locations as well as downstream to advise the public to avoid any contact with these waterways for the next several days.