Cincinnati, OH – The Hamilton County Board of County Commission voted 3-0 Wednesday to add $5 million in funding for MSD’s Sewer Backup program which is designed to address sewer backups in properties. Hamilton County has experienced extreme weather events between August 28, 2016 and April 30, 2017 that caused widespread residential flooding and damage to Hamilton County homes, and created conditions that endanger the health, safety and welfare of persons and property in the County.
The previously-appropriated 2017 Sewer Backup program budget will not cover the cleaning and claim costs associated with the rain events that have already occurred in 2017 and are not anticipated to be sufficient to address further repeated occurrences of these natural disasters throughout the remainder of calendar year 2017.
The Sewer Back-Up program includes:
- Professional, industry-certified cleaning and disinfection services
- Disposal of contaminated property of materials
- Processing and payment of compensation for real and personal property losses through a formal claim process
- Planning, detailed design and construction of sewer backup prevention equipment and systems
Todd Portune stated “I am proud to lead the Board of County Commissioners in making sure the funds are there to help people recover from the disastrous flash floods between August 28, 2016 and April 27, 2017.”
“I’ve had the opportunity over the past few weeks and months to meet with local elected officials, community groups and individual homeowners to discuss how communities and residences have been negatively impacted by sewer back-ups due to the heavy rains affecting our MSD service area,” said Commissioner Chris Monzel. “It’s obvious the damage is serious and communities are really hurting. The commission needed to address the situation quickly and decisively to meet their needs.”
Commissioner Driehaus noted “This year’s significant rainfalls have led to sewer backups causing serious hardship for Hamilton County residents. With our action today, MSD will have the resources it needs to respond to residents swiftly and effectively.”
Hamilton County residents may make a claim by completing a claim form which can be downloaded at: http://sbu.msdgc.org/sbu/page/filing-a-claim.aspx and submitting it to the Metropolitan Sewer District, MSD/SBU Claims Dpt. 225 W. Galbraith Rd. Cincinnati OH 45215. For more information about filing a claim, call 244-5100.