Sewer line repaired after leak near Guerneville

A construction crew has repaired a sewer line that broke and spewed wastewater into the Vacation Beach neighborhood near Guerneville beginning Tuesday, according to a Sonoma Water official.

The crew replaced a 6-foot section of pipe near the west end of Orchard Avenue, said Barry Dugan, a Sonoma Water spokesman. The street is on the south side of the Russian River, about 2 miles west of downtown Guerneville.

While the leak has been stopped, wastewater officials are now “evaluating the condition” of the rest of the sewer line to determine whether further repairs are needed.

“Because of the age of the pipe, there’s potential that it may need to be replaced,” Dugan said.

Wastewater flowed onto several properties on Orchard during the leak, according to Dugan. The sewage went inside a garage on one lot, but officials do not believe any other structures were dampened, he said.

Officials also believe that the water did not reach the Russian River, Dugan said.

The Russian River County Sanitation District planned to have a construction crew clean up property damage, including the removal of soil that was touched by wastewater, according to Dugan.

The leak came after a wastewater spill in downtown Guerneville over the weekend that was also caused by a broken sewer pipe, but officials believe the two incidents were unrelated.

That leak, which was contained Saturday afternoon, was caused by a foot-long tear in a pipeline on River Road at Brookside Lane.

You can reach Staff Writer Matt Pera at matthew.pera@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @Matt__Pera.