NEWS

60,000 gallons of sewage spill into Tom's Bayou

staff report
In this Daily News file photo, the water in Tom's Bayou in Valparaiso is clouded with mud after a solar array farm on Eglin Air Force Base sustained significant erosion from rains. [NICK TOMECEK/DAILY NEWS]

VALPARAISO — The Florida Department of Health in Okaloosa County has issued a health advisory for the Tom’s Bayou area the bridge in Valparaiso due to a sewage spill at Hidden Cove Townhomes.

According to a press release from the agency, the affected area includes Tom’s Creek on the west side to State Road 20 in Valparaiso. The entire area is approximately 2,450 feet in width and 590 feet in depth.

The City of Valparaiso reported a release of 60,000 gallons of raw sewage due to equipment failure at a lift station in Okaloosa County. It is unknown if the release entered any storm drains, but officials say it did it enter Tom’s Bayou.

The spill has been reported to local Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the health department and the State Warning Point system.

Waters contaminated with wastewater presents several health hazards to humans and may contain untreated human sewage with microbes that could cause gastro-intestinal and other diseases. Anyone who comes into contact with the effected waterway should wash thoroughly, especially before eating or drinking. Children and older adults, as well as people with weakened immune systems, are particularly vulnerable to disease so every precaution should be taken if in contact with the affected waters.

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