THUNDER BAY – It’s a simple request, but one that seems to have fallen on deaf ears in some quarters: don’t flush any product other than toilet paper down the toilet.
It’s not a new issue, but the problem has gotten worse in recent weeks as the use of disposable sanitary products like alcohol wipes increases in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s according to a city worker responding to a sewer backup he said was caused by a mass of wipes and other products in the Northwood area Monday.
It’s the second time in a week city sewer and wastewater personnel have had to respond to blockages for that reason. On March 31, the city reported a mass of tissue eight to nine metres long plugged a sewer in Thunder Bay’s north end, requiring a city crew to respond.
That incident led the city to remind residents not to flush anything aside from toilet paper down the toilet - even products labelled as "flushable," which can still cause problems.
City employees haven’t been the only ones affected. Monday’s blockage resulted in wastewater flooding into at least one home located near a sewage pipe junction in Northwood.
Maggie Colbon was returning from an early-morning grocery run Monday morning when she noticed her basement flooding. Her husband Doug knew immediately what to do, starting a sump pump and making the appropriate call to the city – it was the second time in a year the couple have faced the problem, both times for the same reason.
“This has become a major issue,” Doug said. “It’s already happened once with wipes and non-biodegradable material being flushed down toilets. The sewer system can’t handle that, and this is what happens.”
Maggie implored residents to be considerate when they flush.
“This is something that is totally, totally avoidable,” she said. “It doesn’t take a lot – put the stuff that is not supposed to go into the toilet into a plastic bag and dispose of it.”
