DC Water has made significant progress toward repairing a damaged section of the Potomac Interceptor. Crews are nearly done removing a rock and debris dam that was blocking the pipe. Several feet of rocks and debris remain to be cleared and is expected to be completed overnight. Ongoing work continues to maintain bypass pumping operations 24/7 with no overflows reported for 17 days.
As DC Water continues repair efforts on the Potomac Interceptor sewer line, we want to provide an opportunity for the community to engage with us on Wednesday, February 25, to ask questions, and learn more about the response, impacts to the Potomac River, and next steps in the emergency repair and long-term rehabilitation efforts.
Repairs are moving forward, with crews closer to reaching a debris dam and large rocks blocking a section of the damaged Potomac Interceptor. Work has been completed to fully extend the excavation site and install trench boxes to stabilize and isolate the additional pipe sections. No overflows entering the Potomac River have occurred in 16 days.
The excavation around a damaged section of the Potomac Interceptor has been extended and trench boxes installed to provide shoring and stability. This doubles the size of the excavated area, to connect the collapse site with a downstream access point to the Potomac Interceptor.
DC Water crews are working around the clock to keep the Potomac Interceptor repair site safe as another storm approaches. Since February 8, there have been no overflows to the Potomac River, and efforts are underway to bolster pump capacity and manage stormwater runoff due to expected heavy rain and snow that could flood the pumping site and endanger pumping operations.
DC Water will host two community meetings to provide a comprehensive update on the Potomac Interceptor response, current system status, and next steps in emergency repair and long-term rehabilitation efforts.
The meetings will provide a structured overview of:
- What occurred
- Immediate response actions
- Current repair timeline
- Long-term Capital Improvement Plan commitments
DC Water officials and technical ...
Potomac Interceptor Repair Update
February 21, 2026
- For nearly two weeks, no overflows have entered the Potomac River. The last release to the river occurred on February 8.
- Crews are continuing to remove debris and large rocks from inside the damaged pipe section.
- An initial assessment of the damaged pipe section determined the remaining intact structure downstream, which is blocked by an extensive ...
Highlights
- Today marks the 12th consecutive day with no new overflow events entering the Potomac River or impacting surface waters.
- The bulkhead installed in the Potomac Interceptor at I-495 continues to function as designed, preventing flow from moving downstream toward the damaged section of pipe.
- Bypass pumping remains fully operational, despite heavy rains and snowmelt increasing flow.
- Crews ...
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser Visits Site as Crews Make Progress on Repairs
DC Water has successfully reached the damaged section of the Potomac Interceptor, marking a critical step in the ongoing damage assessment and repair efforts. Crews today are manually digging out the affected area, carefully removing sludge, soil, and debris from the collapsed pipe.
Efforts to isolate the damaged section of pipe are moving forward. Engineers are on site and preparations are underway to permanently install a steel bulkhead gate that will cut off flow to the collapse site in combination with an enhanced bypass pumping system that will continue to divert wastewater around the failure and into the Potomac Interceptor further downstream. Once fully activated, the ...
