UPDATE: 

An estimated 117,000 gallons of wastewater was spilled Friday following a suspected lift station failure caused by recent storms, this according to the city of Kyle, working with representatives from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ)  

According to a press release, the spill extended half a mile down the Bunton Branch from the discharge point. 

Per a required TCEQ notice for the wastewater spill, the spill was located from a manhole located north of the Southlake Lift Station. 

The suspected cause of the spill was a mechanical failure of the lift station related to a storm event Thursday morning. 

The spill was contained via construction of a temporary levy to prevent additional water from entering the affected area. 

According to the notice, the spill had no impact on Kyle drinking water or to any neighboring water supplies. 

Persons who purchase water from a public water supply may contact their water supply distributor to determine if the water is safe for personal use. 

Actions that have been taken by the city include the initial assessment, repair of the lift station, along with extensive cleaning of the affected area. 

On Friday, the Kyle City Council called an emergency meeting and allocated up to $50,000 for cleanup. 

City crews continue to investigate the incident. 

By Moses Leos III

After an unknown volume of sewage spilled following a wastewater lift station failure, the Kyle city council Friday appropriated funding toward its immediate cleanup.

By a 7-0 vote in an emergency meeting, the Kyle Council approved an initial expense not to exceed $50,000 to clean a wastewater spill at the Southlake Lift Station in eastern Kyle. The city’s expenditure will derive from their cash reserves.

According to city officials, no boil water notice was issued, as the spill didn’t affect the Kyle drinking water system.

The spill, however, entered the Bunton Branch, which is a tributary of Plum Creek, and caused significant fish kill, Kyle City Manager Scott Sellers said. He said the number of fish that were killed is unknown.

While the volume of sewage spilled is unknown, the city notified the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) about the spill.

According to TCEQ rules, public notice is required of sewage spills exceeding 100,000 gallons. The city is working with the TCEQ and the Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPW).

According to the city, cleanup is expected to take 10 to 14 days and involves removing spilled waste from the Bunton Branch. Sellers said TPW is placing some affected fish on ice for further analysis.

Once the fish killl has been removed, Sellers said cleanup crews would connect six-inch pumps to high-powered pump trucks to remove sewage from the creek and back into the lift station, which pumps wastewater from a lower to higher elevation.

According to Sellers, the city does not anticipate dredging to clean up the stream.

Crews would then pump freshwater to dilute wastewater in the stream to bring to “a safe condition,” according to a press release.

“There’s a saying, ‘the solution to pollution is dilution,’” Sellers said. “At some point, we’re going to add freshwater to that area and it will dilute (sewage that) is left over.”

According to Sellers, the city’s “initial assumption” of what caused the spill was due to Thursday morning’s storms, which they believe knocked out power and communications to the lift station. A generator was also knocked out due to the storm.

Sellers said a phone system is in place that is “supposed to call” to notify crews with the lift station fails. The phone system was “knocked loose” due to the high winds in the storm. The city continues to investigate the cause of the spill.

While Sellers said city crews inspect the lift station on a daily basis, they did not inspect it Thursday, as they were involved in another project.

Crews inspected the lift station Friday and discovered the spill.

The city believes one property owner, Bob Schlortt, was affected by the spill. Mayor Todd Webster said the city is working with Schlortt by installing fencing to prevent his cattle from drinking from the stream.

“It’s an environmental issue that we need to take care of immediately,” Webster said. “It’s something you have to deal with and deal with right away.”