The City of Batavia placed a temporary sewage pump at the lift station at West Main Street near Redfield Parkway on Monday, so workers do not have to man the station. The temporary sewage pump runs continuously and is powered by diesel fuel.
The lift station’s electronic box was destroyed on Sunday morning, when a dual wheel pick-up truck jumped the curb for an unknown reason, and struck a pole and then the lift station’s electrical panel as it was traveling west on West Main Street about 8:00a.m. The driver was not injured. City of Batavia Public Works employees spent all day Sunday into Monday morning manning the station’s pumps to make sure they were working to avoid any sewer backups.
According to Director of Public Works, Brett Frank, replacement of the electronic panel for the lift station is not going to be an easy fix and will have to be redesigned and created by GHD, an engineering firm in Buffalo who upgraded the panel 10 years ago.
Frank says the insurance companies for the City and the driver have been advised.
Normally, there are two pumps that alternate to pump untreated sewage to a higher elevation and eventually to the wastewater treatment facility. The electronic panel also allows for electronic monitoring of the pumps to make sure they are always functioning.
As of Tuesday, the City had not yet met with GHD, and Frank says it’s to be determined what the plan is moving forward with the panel box and its new design.