Saskatoon storm 'overwhelmed' treatment plant
Saskatoon's wastewater treatment plant struggled to keep up during the June 20 rainstorm that battered the city.
The plant measures its flow in millions of litres per day (MLD).
A city report outlines how 270 million MLD of water was rushing through the plant during the storm's peak. The typical average daily flow sits around 79 MLD, according to the city.
The highest flow rate "in recent history" happened in 2017, with 170 MLD, according to the report.
During the storm, the plant was "overwhelmed" resulting in a minor spill of 70 cubic metres of raw sewage into the South Saskatchewan River, the report said.
"Due to the minimal amount of sewage spilled, there is no risk to the public to utilize the river for recreation," the report said.
By comparison, an Olympic-sized swimming pool holds 2,500 cubic metres of water.
The city's sanitary and storm systems operate independently.
However, water can infiltrate the storm system through avenues such as manholes, pipes and sump pump connections, the report said.
During the storm, city residents were asked via social media to refrain from unnecessarily flushing toilets and running washing machines and dishwashers.
The plant was switched to manual operation during the storm, which diverted millions of litres of water and prevented "longer-term quality impacts," the report said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canada's most wanted fugitive arrested in P.E.I. in connection with Toronto homicide
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
BREAKING Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Poilievre unrepentant over calling Trudeau 'wacko' as his MPs say Speaker should resign
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.
Plane overshoots runway at airport in St. John's, N.L., no injuries reported
Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are headed to St. John's, N.L., after a plane overshot a runway at the city's airport this afternoon.
A teen was found buried in a basement in New York. An engraved ring helped police learn her identity two decades later
For more than two decades, the unknown victim was nicknamed "Midtown Jane Doe" because she was found in the Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood of New York City. But this week, investigators finally revealed her identity.