City of Effingham to Begin Several Projects Monday

The City of Effingham to begin several Projects on Monday, August 19.

Ameren Illinois will be performing utility work on West Wernsing Avenue – West of Raney Street beginning on August 19.  The work is expected to take a week.  There may be intermittent lane closures during the work day.  Motorists are asked to use caution when travelling through the work area.

A portion of Ford Avenue, from Lake Pointe Apartments to the stop sign at Raney St., will be under construction starting Monday, August 19, 2019. The road will be accessible at all times; however, minor delays are possible. Motorists are urged to follow the construction signs and to slowdown in the construction areas. Please use extreme caution when driving in this area.

Due to the rain, RJN Group, Inc. will be starting on Monday, August 19th to do the First and Second Phase of testing sanitary sewers.

Two different areas will be smoke tested. One area is south of Rickelman Avenue, east of Keller Drive, to Cumberland Court, and north of Ford Avenue. Outer Belt West will also be included from Keller Drive to Evergreen Avenue, including Firefly Grill.

The other area is north of Jaycee Avenue and south of the train tracks, east of Banker Street to west of Aspen Drive.

The purpose of the smoke testing is to locate defects in the sewer system.

The smoke is non-toxic, harmless and creates no fire hazard. It should not enter your home unless you have defective plumbing or dried up drain traps. Drain traps should always be filled with water to prevent sewer gases or odors from entering the building. If you have seldom used drains, please pour water in the drain to fill the trap, which should prevent smoke from the testing to enter. 

If smoke is found in your home or building, simply open windows, and the smoke will dissipate quickly. Please also notify the onsite testing personnel or the onsite City staff. If the smoke does enter your home, the potential does exist for sewer gases to also enter your home, and you should consult your licensed plumber to fix any problems.

This will be an ongoing program and the information obtained will be used to improve the City’s sewer system in keeping with state and federal regulations.