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Resident Lynette Smith urges Krebs to investigate stormwater-sewer cross-connections after repeated sewage backups
Summary
Resident Lynette Smith told the Krebs Utilities Authority on April 15 that heavy rains have sent black sewage into her home multiple times over the past year; city staff outlined tracer dye and smoke-testing to locate infiltration and identified a timeline of immediate dye testing and smoke testing after a dry month (likely late June–July).
Resident Lynette Smith told the Krebs Utilities Authority (KUA) on April 15 that her home at 395 SE Choctaw has experienced multiple sewage intrusions during heavy rains over the past year, including a night when "black sewage was coming up in my bathtub," she said. Smith said a manhole lid in the alley behind her property has been broken or missing for more than a year and that she has spent about $18,000 repairing flood and sewage damage.
"When he turned down the street, the manhole cover in the street, there was water shooting out of that keyhole about this high," Smith said, indicating several feet of water, and later described waste and toilet paper showing that sewage—not just storm runoff—entered her property. She said she has contacted city staff repeatedly and the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ), and that ODEQ has recommended fixing the manhole lid but that the problem has not been permanently addressed.
City staff member Jonathan Clifton told the board the KUA can pursue two primary diagnostic steps: liquid tracer dye testing targeted to the local storm system as soon as test supplies arrive, and town-wide smoke testing to reveal breaks or illegal cross-connections once there is about a month of dry weather. "When we do the smoke testing, it is going to show probably like a million breaks," Clifton said, and he cautioned that many defects may be on private service lines rather than in the city system.
Board members pressed staff to act promptly. Board member Larry Coxsey said he inspected the area and agreed the line needs checking; Chuck Nelms urged that this time the results should trigger repairs rather than being ignored. Staff described an enforcement history in which customers were given time to fix defective private connections and were later fined ($50 per month referenced as a prior penalty) if they did not comply.
Other board discussion identified possible causes and locations: members noted a nearby retention pond and a new housing addition whose storm drains might be improperly tied into the sewer system, and staff said dye testing would show whether stormwater entering the system is coming from those branches.
The board asked staff to start dye testing quickly and to prepare for smoke testing after a dry stretch (staff estimated late June–July for the smoke program). Resident Lynette Smith said she had not filed a tort claim and was primarily seeking a permanent fix: "What's done is done, just fix it so it doesn't continue," she said.
Next steps: staff will acquire tracer dye and begin targeted storm-system testing; smoke testing and broader notifications will follow when weather permits. The board did not take a formal vote on remedies during the meeting.
