Sewage spill renders Tacoma waterway off limits for the time being
The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department is asking people to stay out of the water along the Thea Foss Waterway and at Thea’s Park at 405 Dock St. due to a sewage spill.
The department sent out an advisory about the spill on Wednesday
“The advisory remains in effect because of the ongoing threat to public health,” health department spokesperson Steve Metcalf said in an email.
Bacteria and viruses in wastewater can cause stomach and other illnesses.
The Health Department took samples from the water twice this week on Monday and Wednesday.
“Results from both tests showed bacteria levels were too high to lift the advisory,” Metcalf said. “We will sample again at the beginning of next week and re-evaluate once we get those results, which could take a couple of days.”
The response by the health department came after a report was made of a liveaboard boat purging its black water tank, city of Tacoma spokesperson Stacy Ellifrit told The News Tribune on Friday afternoon.
For advisory updates, visit tpchd.org.
This story was originally published May 1, 2020 at 1:49 PM.
