Georgetown motel employee accused of dumping raw sewage into marsh
A Georgetown motel employee dumped raw sewage into a marsh for one week, federal officials allege in an indictment.
Maurice Avent, a maintenance worker at Rodeway Inn, is charged in federal court in connection to discharging pollutant into United States waters in August 2018.
A federal indictment states two pumps stopped working around August and the wet well overflowed with raw sewage. When working, the wet well at the front of the property accumulates raw sewage. The sewage is then discharged into the City of Georgetown sewer system.
Avent allegedly installed a pump, attached a hose and directed the hose into the marsh behind the motel. The pump discharged raw sewage into the marsh for about one week, according to the indictment.
Laura Renwick, public information officer with S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, said DHEC and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency began to investigate after receiving a complaint from the U.S. Coast Guard’s National Response Center.
“DHEC and the City of Georgetown responded, and Rodeway Inn was required to immediately repair the site,” Renwick said. “The area where the dumping took place has historically been classified as prohibited for shellfish harvesting, so no emergency closures were necessary.”
After a week, Avent was approached by South Carolina officials and redirected the hose to the city sewer system, the indictment states.
According to U.S. law, the discharging of any pollutant into waters by a person without a permit is illegal.
This story was originally published April 12, 2019 at 8:04 AM.
