DC Water Addresses Sewer Back-ups in Bloomingdale, Flood-prone Neighborhoods
Recent flooding events prompted DC Water officials to quickly convene and investigate both short-term and long-term solutions for residents of Bloomingdale and certain areas of the District prone to sewer back-ups and flooding.
Today, DC Water releases a letter to customers, an action agenda and a webpage describing what DC Water is doing right now for short-term relief, what DC Water is exploring as interim measures and DC Waters long-term multi-billion dollar engineering solution that will provide relief in the long run. The materials also outline steps that residents can take now to help prevent both sewer back-ups and overland flooding.
The webpage with these materials can be found at dcwater.com/bloomingdale
For todays impending rain, and continuing into the near future, the District Department of Public Works (DPW) will provide sandbags and several DC Water staff members will assist at the distribution point. Todays distribution begins at 1 pm at RFK Stadium, Lot 7.
We have already begun implementing what I call our Bloomingdale Action Agenda, commented DC Water General Manager George S. Hawkins. This is a list of specific steps DC Water, residents and businesses, and other parts of the government are taking and can take to reduce the effects of runoff and flooding.
In addition, DC Water and Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie are in communication about coordinating a multi-entity examination of this problem. District and federal agencies with jurisdiction over streets and alleys, stormwater management, plumbing codes, insurance and flood plains, and residents, all have a part in this discussion.
I am pleased that DC Water is taking these steps to help our community in the short term, said Councilmember McDuffie. I will continue to work with General Manager Hawkins and the staffs of other agencies to resolve the problem in the long term, and my team is exploring any legislative or regulatory changes that might help.
DC Water will also attend a special meeting of the Bloomingdale Civic Association on Saturday, August 4 at St. Georges Episcopal Church, 160 U Street, NW in the basement.
For customers experiencing an emergency, please call DC Waters 24-hour Command Center at 202-612-3400. For all other inquiries, please contact bloomingdale@dcwater.com or DC Waters Bloomingdale hotline at 202-787-2688.
