NBV family says clogged main line caused raw sewage to flow into their basement

Heather Fazio is unhappy with the lack of help from the borough.

What began as a water intrusion under investigation by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has evolved into a second crisis for one North Belle Vernon family, who say a damaged sewer line and an allegedly clogged borough-owned main sent raw sewage backing into their home.

Heather Fazio of Bluff Street said contractors repairing water damage in her basement Wednesday struck a buried sewer line while installing a French drain and sump pump as part of ongoing remediation following the earlier flooding.

Fazio said the water entered her finished basement days after Ligonier Construction Company completed grout injection work on her home as part of a state-administered mine subsidence stabilization project.

The project is not being conducted by North Belle Vernon Borough.

It is being administered by DEP’s Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation, with Ligonier Construction serving as the contractor. Property owners within the project area were given the option to participate and had to provide permission for work affecting their properties.

DEP is still investigating whether the water that entered Fazio’s basement came from groundwater or from water used during the grout injection process.

While contractors were attempting to prevent additional water intrusion Wednesday, Fazio said a jackhammer broke a sewer pipe beneath her basement floor.

“They hit it with the jackhammer,” Fazio said. “The smell was just horrendous.”

According to Fazio, contractors then ran a camera through the sewer line and traced it toward the street, where she said the camera stopped at what appeared to be a blockage.

She said representatives from the borough’s street department responded and opened a nearby manhole, where sewage was visible standing in the line.

“The construction company looked at North Belle Vernon and said, ‘That’s a borough problem,’” Fazio said.

Fazio contends the blockage was in the borough- owned main sewer line and caused sewage to back into her basement after the private sewer line inside the home was damaged.

“My family had nowhere to stay after raw sewage exploded from the line in our house,” she said. “It took two days for the borough to show up when we needed help.”

She said Ligonier Construction arranged for a contractor from Indiana, Pa. area to clear the sewer line Wednesday evening after borough personnel were unable to secure immediate assistance.

Council President Brett Berish said the provider the borough typically uses wasn’t immediately available.

Fazio said over the past few days contractors cleaned and disinfected the basement, but some personal belongings, including furniture, clothing and her son’s college supplies, were damaged.

She said the basement remains under temporary repairs while crews monitor the area for additional water intrusion with cameras and a newly installed sump pump. Permanent repairs to the basement cannot be completed until mine stabilization work on her street is finished, she said.

Fazio praised Ligonier Construction for responding to the emergency and covering remediation costs under DEP’s direction, but criticized borough officials for what she described as a lack of accountability regarding the sewer line.

“I was disappointed nobody from leadership came to see the damage or offer any help,” she said.

She also questioned whether the condition of local sewer infrastructure should have been evaluated before work began near participating homes.

“We’ve lived here 15 years and never had water problems or sewage problems,” Fazio said. “I don’t care if it’s not a borough project, I think they should have made sure the lines were clear before anything was allowed to start.”

Berish emphasized that the mine stabilization work is not a borough project.

“The borough didn’t tell DEP where to drill, and the borough isn’t doing the drilling,” he said.

He said the damage inside Fazio’s basement resulting from the broken private sewer line is a matter involving the homeowner and Ligonier Construction, but promised the borough will address any problems found within the municipal sewer system.

“As far as her basement, that’s between her and Ligonier,” Berish said. “If there is a problem with the main line and our engineer determines the borough is responsible, we’ll take care of it.”

Berish said the borough is still evaluating whether any municipal infrastructure contributed to the sewage backup.

“I honestly don’t know,” Berish said. “If there is anything the borough is responsible for, we will fix it.”

Berish said preliminary observations indicate a section of sewer line has a “belly,” or low spot, approximately 57 feet from the home, causing wastewater to move more slowly than expected, although the line still has slope.

“There is sewage in the manhole,” Berish said. “It’s moving, but it’s moving slowly.”

He said the borough’s engineer, street department and officials will assess whether the municipal sewer system contributed to the backup.

Berish said he sympathizes with the family’s situation, but can’t support how Fazio has handled the matter.

“I’ve been through it, and it’s awful,” Berish said. “But the way she has gone about this in my opinion is all wrong.

“No one in the borough wants to see something like this happen to one of our residents.”

Earlier this week, Borough Emergency Management Coordinator Shelby Ferguson updated council on DEP’s investigation into the original water intrusion.

Laboratory testing on water samples collected from the home is expected to take two to three months before officials determine whether the flooding resulted from groundwater or from water used to inject a cement and fly ash grout mixture into the abandoned mine.

The approximately $11.8 million mine subsidence remediation project is administered by DEP’s Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation and carried out by Ligonier Construction Company.

The work is intended to stabilize abandoned underground coal mine voids beneath portions of the community. Crews drill boreholes from the surface and inject grout into the abandoned mine workings to reduce the risk of future ground collapse.

The project is funded through the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement using money provided through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Work is expected to continue through the end of 2027.

Whether the sewage backup was caused solely by the damaged private line, a problem in the borough-owned sewer main or a combination of both remains under review. DEP’s investigation into the original water intrusion also remains ongoing.

Fazio is disappointed with the lack of support from her elected officials.

“North Belle Vernon should be held accountable. Those lines belong to North Belle Vernon, and that’s who I pay my sewage bill to,” she said.

Berish said workers planned to continue to evaluate the line and consult with engineers. Any repairs will be based on the recommendation of the borough engineer and would require council approval.