More than 1,800 homeowners across Hamilton County, including residents in Montgomery, Blue Ash and Sycamore Township, have reported sewer backups since the July 17 flooding, and the region faces steep federal thresholds to unlock disaster relief, MSD and county emergency officials told commissioners Tuesday.
The updated figure is up from the 1,500 sewer backup reports MSD disclosed at Montgomery's Thursday, July 23 news conference, as we reported July 28. Of the 1,800-plus reports, more than 900 have met eligibility requirements for cleaning services through MSD's Sewer Backup program, according to WCPO.
The National Weather Service has officially classified the Friday, July 17 storm as a 1,000-year event, meaning it carries roughly a one-in-1,000 statistical probability of occurring in any given year. Five to six inches of rain fell in about one hour near Norwood, according to Hamilton County Emergency Management. One person died. Three others were injured.
System overwhelmed, not broken
MSD Director Diana Christy told commissioners the sewer system did not fail.
"This wasn't an operational issue," Christy said. "It is just beyond the capacity of what our sewers are designed to convey."
MSD Deputy Director and Chief Engineer Reese Johnson said the agency is fast-tracking 10 infrastructure projects aimed at flooding hotspots. The projects run in the millions of dollars each, Johnson said. He acknowledged they would not have prevented damage from a storm 10 times larger than what the system was built to handle, but said they could lessen the impacts of future events.
MSD has also contacted the University of Cincinnati to study whether urbanization is driving more intense storms in the region.
Federal aid thresholds
Hamilton County Emergency Management Agency Director Nick Crossley laid out two benchmarks the county must meet to secure federal disaster assistance:
- Public assistance (requiring a governor's or presidential emergency declaration): approximately $4.2 million in uninsured losses countywide. Crossley said reaching that figure without a major infrastructure loss would be difficult.
- Individual assistance (FEMA aid to homeowners): at least 25 homes must meet FEMA's "major damage" standard, which WVXU reported means water 18 to 24 inches high inside the living area or above the first electrical outlet, making the home unsafe and uninhabitable. Basements do not count unless proven to be primary living spaces.
Crossley said he expected to submit a damage assessment to the state during the week of Tuesday. Fairfax was the only community to have turned in its damage numbers. All other municipalities, including Cincinnati, were still completing assessments.
Hamilton County commissioners were also considering declaring a county state of emergency to help secure federal relief, according to WLWT.
What area residents should know
MSD's annual budget for the Sewer Backup program is about $8.2 million. Christy told commissioners the agency expects to exceed that amount because of the July storms.
The program provides investigation, professional cleaning and reimbursement of qualifying damages. Homeowners normally have 48 hours after discovering a backup to report it, but MSD has been less strict about that deadline given the volume of calls, according to the city of Cincinnati's flooding resource page. Once approved, residents have two years to complete the reimbursement process.
Residents who reported a backup and have not heard from MSD can call 513-352-4900 or visit msdgc.org/SBU.
