Selinsgrove-area sewage line update: Temporary fix in place, pipe to arrive Sept. 23 for long-term repair

Water is shown flowing down the banks of the Susquehanna River at the Hoover Island boat launch on Sunday.

Riverkeeper note: This is an update on an ongoing situation that began on Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, when a main sewage line ruptured near the East Snyder Sewage Treatment Plant south of Selinsgrove. See the original story here.

​As of 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, the Snyder County Emergency Management Agency is reporting that a temporary sleeve was installed overnight on a ruptured sewage line that had been spewing raw sewage into the Penns Creek/Susquehanna River watershed since earlier in the day on Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. 

The Facebook update also indicated that a pipe should arrive later Monday that would be used for necessary long-term repairs at the site. 

The 20-inch sewage line, which brings wastewater from numerous communities in the eastern part of Snyder County to the treatment plant, ruptured early Sunday, Sept. 22. It released raw sewage into Penns Creek, which flows into Middle Creek and the Susquehanna River below the town of Selinsgrove.

"There are no surface water intakes for public drinking water in the affected area and drinking water systems downstream of the incident were notified," according to a press release from the state's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). "Public drinking water supplies are safe and may continue to be used."

The DEP and the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association urges everyone to avoid direct impact with the river, including recreational use of the Susquehanna below Selinsgrove for about 20 miles south (to the Liverpool area in Perry County) until the situation is resolved and impacts are assessed.

If you have any comments, questions or information about the situation, you can share them with Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association via email at [email protected]