Sewage water homes in Brooklyn neighborhood

Lucy Yang Image
Sunday, July 12, 2020
Sewage floods homes in Brooklyn neighborhood
Sidewalks on East 89th Street are dry for now, but for about two dozen homeowners in Canarsie, sewage water flooded homes on Friday night.

CANARSIE, Brooklyn (WABC) -- Sidewalks on East 89th Street are dry for now, but for about two dozen homeowners in Canarsie, sewage water flooded homes on Friday night.

The DEP confirms a sewage pipe got clogged during the storm, sending waste right back into the homes.

Officials are not sure if the clog was due to garbage that should not have been flushed down the toilet, or if the tropical storm sent too much litter into the system.

Either way, homeowners were left to clean up the mess. Carol Thompson is a registered nurse, an emergency worker, and she spent all weekend throwing out ruined clothes and equipment in her basement.

"This is feces. Contaminated water. We can have diseases from this - this is really serious," Thompson said.

Thompson said she has lived in the neighborhood for 11 years, and this is the second time this happened - the first time with Superstorm Sandy.

"I lost clothing, shoes, equipment - the bulk of stuff on the floor, all messed up with feces," added Thompson.

Thankfully, workers have since unclogged the sewage pipe.