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A smelly mess: Raw sewage spills onto street in Metairie for several days

Toilet paper, feces, and a vile smell have lingered along Edenborn Avenue for several days.

METAIRIE, La. — Over the past four days, sewage has been spilling out of manhole covers along Edenborn Avenue in the Fat City part of Metairie. It's left human waste and a terrible smell all over the street.

"Toilet paper, feces," Rollin Smith points out in front of his home. "Here we are in Metairie with four days of sewage running down the streets."

Tuesday afternoon, crews with the Jefferson Parish Sewerage Department were out there trying to offer temporary and permanent relief. A spokesperson said the lift station that moves wastewater through the pipes isn't working correctly. Right now, they don't know why. Crews put a portable pump in place that will at least provide a fix for now. 

"People will walk through it, I've seen people walk their dogs through it, I've been having to disinfect my dogs feet with peroxide," Smith said. 

According to neighbors, it's not the first time. 

"It's happened quite a bit. Over the last several months, I've called a number of times because of the same problem," Smith said. 

He believes it happens when it rains heavily and the pumps back up.

"When we get any water in the system, it seems like it backs up and overflows into the street," Smith said. 

The Jefferson Parish Sewerage Department believes that maybe because they are relying on old drainage pipes. They hope to provide some long-term relief against street flooding in the future.

The Sewerage Department still doesn't know what the underlying issue is with the lift station, but they hope to have some answers by Wednesday morning so they can find a more permanent fix.

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