St. Pete approves projects to make sewer system more resilient

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8 hours ago

The Brief
City leaders gave the greenlight for critical infrastructure improvements after Hurricanes Helene and Milton exposed dangerous weaknesses in the sewage system.
The City Council signed off on several infrastructure projects — including replacing the 10-year-old pumps at Lift Station 85.
The move comes after Hurricanes Helene and Milton overwhelmed the city's aging wastewater system, leading to widespread overflows.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - City leaders gave the greenlight for critical infrastructure improvements after Hurricanes Helene and Milton exposed dangerous weaknesses in the sewage system.
After back-to-back hurricanes dumped millions of gallons of raw sewage into St. Pete's waterways — and into some residents' homes — the city council has approved a series of major infrastructure upgrades aimed at preventing similar disasters in the future.
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The move comes after Hurricanes Helene and Milton overwhelmed the city's aging wastewater system, leading to widespread overflows, including 5.9 million gallons of sewage pouring from 55 manholes during Milton alone.
"There's no words," said Pamela Blome, a local homeowner whose house was flooded with sewage. "The last time I was in here, it smelled like sewage. All the walls were torn out, and I still remember seeing the black mold."
Blome is one of thousands who suffered sewage damage.
READ: Lake Bonny residents brace for new hurricane season after Milton's devastating flooding
"The smell was horrendous, and literally everything had to be thrown out because of E. coli," she added. "We couldn't save anything."
On Thursday, the City Council signed off on several infrastructure projects — including replacing the 10-year-old pumps at Lift Station 85, the city's largest and busiest sewage pump station located downtown. Public Works Administrator Claude Tankersley said the station's pumps have become less efficient over time due to nonstop use.
"These pumps are always running," Tankersley explained. "Over time they have become less efficient."
Along with new pumps, the city is also installing an AquaFence flood barrier at Lift Station 85 — a modular system designed to protect critical infrastructure from storm surge. Inspired by a similar system used at Tampa General Hospital, the barrier is expected to arrive this month.
MORE: Tampa Bay residents learn DIY ways to keep floodwaters out this hurricane season
"The water holds the wall up," explained Dustin Pasteur, the vice president of facilities at Tampa General. "It's the weight of the water that actually supports it. And we bolt it into the ground to keep the wind from blowing it over before the water gets here."
What's next
Council also approved an additional $1 million investment in sewer pipe lining upgrades to help reduce inflow and overflows during major rain events. The improvements are aimed at increasing the city's resiliency as climate-related weather events become more intense and frequent.
St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch called the latest upgrades just one piece of a larger puzzle. Over the past nine years, St. Pete has poured nearly $1 billion into infrastructure improvements — and more investments are expected in the coming years.
"We're not just reacting — we're planning for the future," Welch said.
The Source
The information in this story was gathered by FOX 13's Genevieve Curtis.
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