Public asked not to swim or fish where 20,000 gallons of sewage spilled in Beaufort Co.
People are being cautioned not to swim or fish in a northern Beaufort County waterway after a sewage spill this week.
An estimated 20,000 gallons of wastewater spilled into the Beaufort River from a pipe on Parris Island this week, Beaufort-Jasper Water and Sewer Authority said this week. Visitors were asked not to swim or fish in the area.
“As a precaution, we always err on the side of safety,” water authority spokeswoman Pam Flasch said.
The spill was the result of a break in a large pipe near the marshes off of Parris Island, Flasch said. The utility is repairing the pipe and investigating the cause of the break because the pipe was only 10 years old, she said.
The water utility told state environmental officials about the spill and worked with the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control to evaluate effects of the spill., a news release said
Shellfish harvesting is already prohibited in the area of the spill because of its proximity to a Beaufort-Jasper Water Authority discharge area, DHEC spokesman Tommy Crosby said. The utility submitted water samples to DHEC and the state agency said the sample results didn’t require any action by the agency or the agency to conduct its own tests.
The nearest approved shellfish beds aren’t affected, Crosby said.
Notices were posted upstream and downstream of the spill, Flasch said.
A sign posted by the water authority this week at Port Royal Landing at the end of Sands Beach Road near the mouth of Battery Creek cautioned visitors not to swim or fish in the area of the spill until the signs had been removed. Signs were also posted on Parris Island and at Parris Island Landing, though there were no specific parameters for where the public should avoid.
Flasch did not know how long the notice might be in place but said that the organizers of a shark-tooth hunting event Saturday at Sands Beach in Port Royal have been told the event can go on as planned.
This story was originally published May 1, 2019 at 3:09 PM.
