Bumblebee—the machine boring MSD’s Waterway Protection Tunnel—has reached the halfway mark in her quest to carve a 4-mile path through bedrock eighteen stories under Louisville. Named in honor of Muhammad Ali, the 412-foot long machine is under the area of Franklin and Buchannan streets. Soon, she will turn southeast and head toward the final destination of Lexington Road and Grinstead Drive.

This is a detective story that starts with a suspected smell of cat pee.

MSD’s Industrial Waste Department (IWD) manages various programs intended to safeguard against the exposure of industrial waste to our waterways.

Reports started coming in during the first quarter of 2019 about a strong cat urine smell in the Shelby Park area. The department, fearing possible water contamination, began searching for the source.

“It wasn’t a typical sewer odor, so it came to us,” IWD Programs Manager Mike Moore said.

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When Michael Fitzner’s suggestion of “Bumblebee” won the contest in 2018 to name the machine boring MSD’s four-mile long Waterway Protection Tunnel, he was awarded a chance to go into the tunnel with five coworkers. On December 5, Fitzner, with Latoya English, Adonis Henderson, Patrick Meador, Cemal Mitchell and Kayla Sheckell, loaded into a large metal cage and were lowered 220 feet down the working shaft into the tunnel via a crane.

MSD contractors have finally been able to reach the bottom of the 35-feet deep repair shaft next to Harrods Creek in Prospect. Mobile cameras inserted into the pipe revealed the damage is significantly worse than expected. Both pipes under the creek have significant breaks.

The repair project is more comprehensive than initially thought, involving discussions with state and other regulatory agencies, and other utilities. Repair plans are contingent on dialogue with these agencies. MSD customers will continue to have no interruption of their sewer service.

MSD has submitted two applications to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding through the Kentucky Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (KYEM/HS) as a sub-recipient.

Can you dig it?

You can find out on January 30, 2020. MSD will outline upcoming opportunities for doing business with us at our annual “Can You Dig It?” event. Join us Thursday, January 30, 2020, from 10 AM to Noon at the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage, 1701 W Muhammad Ali Boulevard. Learn about our 2020 construction projects, how to register for bid notifications, about our Community Benefits and Supplier Diversity programs.

RSVP at msd-can-you-dig-it-2020.eventbrite.com.

MSD today took steps to further reduce noise disturbance from the temporary pumps used to route wastewater around the sewer repair site behind Harrods Run Road and Timber Creek Court in Prospect. Insulation was added to the roof of the pump house and more straw bales were placed around the perimeter of the site. The insulation and additional straw will reduce the amount of noise escaping the pump site.

Cleanup from floodwaters that delayed repair work on a sewer line in Prospect continues at the site behind Harrods Run Road and Timber Creek Court. Construction of the steel safety enclosure that will protect workers as they do the repair 35-feet below ground level on a section of the 30-inch force main that runs under Harrods Creek will continue through the weekend.

Floodwaters that delayed repair work on a sewer line in Prospect over the weekend have receded and crews are now clearing out mud to regain access to the site behind Harrods Run Road and Timber Creek Court.

That will allow them to resume bracing the steel safety enclosure constructed to protect workers as they make the repair 35-feet below ground level on a section of the 30-inch force main that runs under Harrods Creek. In the meantime, MSD will extend cameras into the hole to attempt a visual assessment of the damage to the pipe.