The Orange Water and Sewer Authority responded to an overflow of about 2,200 gallons of untreated wastewater on the east side of Pope Road in Durham County on Sunday night.
The water overflowed from a sewer manhole at a wastewater pump station and was stopped after about 45 minutes.
The overflow resulted from high water levels in an OWASA sewer due to intense rainfall, and the failure of a motor component in one of the station pumps.
The overflow was east of and downstream of Clark Lake in the New Hope Creek portion of the Cape Fear River Basin.
The spilled wastewater went into a tributary of New Hope Creek next to the pump station, and the wastewater was diluted by stormwater.
OWASA reported the overflow to the N.C. Division of Water Quality, which is investigating the matter.
