Homeowners found themselves in a messy situation last weekend after toilets abruptly exploded and began to spew raw sewage into their houses.
“It was like a horror movie,” said Bristol Township resident Maureen Anderson. “It came out like a geyser.”
The township told Anderson that her toilet exploded on June 9 when workers were cleaning out clogged pipes near her home on Gable Hill Road.
Levittown resident Mark Hodge says the same thing happened at his home as well as his son’s at the same time just around the corner from Anderson’s house.
“It lasted 20 minutes,” said Hodge. “It was horrible.”
To make matters worse, the homeowners say they were told to foot the bill for the cost of the cleanup.
“We have to fix something that we didn’t do,” said Hodge.
The homeowners say the municipality told them there’s a law that states the municipality is not at fault in these types of situations. The Lower Bucks County Municipal Authority informed the homeowners of a law that protects the municipality from assuming responsibility in the incident. The managing director of the Sewage Department said, according to their lawyer, the township is protected by the State Political Subdivision Torts Claims Act, a law created to reduce municipal liability.
The homeowners claim their insurance companies would cover the costs of the damages if they had a specific insurance rider. Since none of them have it however, the Levittown residents were forced to shell out thousands of dollars to repair their homes. They tell NBC10 they feel as though the township has turned its back on them.
“We’re getting the brush off,” said Anderson.
NBC10 called the attorney representing the township several times over the past two days but no one returned our calls. We also went to his office for comment but were told he was unavailable.
