When flood waters from the Pequabuck River in Plainville spilled over the bank on Sunday, residents of the Robert Street Extension watched in disbelief as water swallowed their homes. Five days later, they are dealing with E.coli. Water tests revealed E.coli levels 700 times above the normal range are in the flood water.
The drinking water, according to the director of health, is safe. The New Britain Water Department supplies water to the area and tests determined that the water is potable.
Residents said the town manager and the public health director delivered the disturbing news about the sample from the flood water on Friday morning.
A sewage treatment plant sits not far from the neighborhood and the closest source of contamination would have been the septic systems serving the homes on those three streets, according to the health department.
"You can smell the sewage, the swamp, and ... everything is starting to smell," Joy Chacon said.
Residents have been advised to wear protective gear, including gloves, when working in their homes to do any corrective, repair or cleaning work, health officials said.
Most of the neighbors are required to have flood insurance because of where they live, but they said it would not cover enough. They’re just looking for some sort of outside help.
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U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy is in the neighborhood on Friday and trying to get them help. He said he is trying to get the street declared a disaster area as soon as possible to obtain federal aid.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is sending crews door to door to assess the damage.
