300 Million Gallons Of Poop Water Spill Into The Potomac River

Stay out of the river in Washington DC for a little bit.

Last week, authorities reported a collapsed sewerline near Lockhouse 10 along the Potomac River in D.C, which has resulted in what's being described as "A Small geyser of poop water" spilling out into the river.

Environmental groups have estimated that nearly 300 gallons of waste water have been dumped into the water over the course of the ordeal, and now some tests of the water have shown some scary results.

DC Water officials are having some battles of their own trying to work the problem, because of the winter weather that's come through the area since the collapse. Equipment has frozen up, employees have to work carefully to not be in danger from cold temperatures, and it doens't sound like a full containment has been successful.

The worry though, is the E. Coli contamination.

"We sampled the sewage discharging from the broken interceptor pipe to the Potomac River near Cabin John at Lock 10 and the result was 4,884,000 MPN – Most Probable Number for E.coli – which is 11,900 times higher than the 410 MPN limit for safe human contact," Potomac Riverkeeper Dean Naujoks wrote on the group’s website.

Crews have been working to create a bypass system for the poop water to move it away from the river, but so far it hasn't been fully successful.

Officials have continuously emphasized that the drinking water and this water are two separate systems, and drinking water is not and will not be impacted by the spill.

Read more at Fox 5 DC