DETROIT, Mich. (WXYZ) — Sharon Poindexter has lived in her home on St. Mary's Street since 1970 — mostly without problems, she said. That changed last week when sewage began backing up into her basement at the same time the city was doing work on her block.
Poindexter said she noticed the flooding around Sept. 10, when crews were replacing lead service lines in her neighborhood. She said the problem gets worse every time she or her two sons use water in the home.
"This is feces coming up out my shower. My whole basement is flooded all the way up to the baseboard," Poindexter said.
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To cope with the smell, she has been boiling orange peels and cinnamon around the clock.
Despite repeated attempts to contact the city, Poindexter said she received no help.
"It's not any help. I have called everybody I can think of—I have sent letters," Poindexter said.
After hearing from Poindexter, 7 News Detroit reached out to the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department. Deputy Director Sam Smalley said most homes in Detroit connect to sanitary lines in the alley, but Poindexter's home also connects to one in the street.
"We believe this customer is connected to both," Smalley said.
Smalley said both sewers are functioning properly, but crews did notice something concerning near the lead service line work.
"Where we did the lead service line replacement—while we didn't see any crock or plastic piping, our crews did note a smell of sewage," Smalley said.
After we connected with the department, several workers came out Wednesday afternoon. While the exact cause of the problem is still being investigated, the department said it plans to fix it.
"We're going to jump on it, and replace as quick as we possibly can. If we did damage it, we apologize," Smalley said.
After days of waiting for answers, Poindexter said she finally feels relieved.
"I thank you, Channel 7, for doing this," Poindexter said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
