Rain Leads to Sewer Problem, Shuts Down Bald Knob School

Vacation came a little early for some children in Bald Knob schools. The Bald Knob Elementary School has been shut down most of this week, after major problems with a sewer pipe. Monday`s storms put added pressure on a sewer line that already had problems. For the school, it meant no rest rooms or running water. And when the city went to fix the problem, they found it was bigger than they thought. "And they were supposed to have it fixed by Thursday, but they couldn`t so we`re out of school all week except for Monday," explained 5th grader, Drew Willard. The children that normally come to Little Treasures Day Care after school, are staying all day. "We have two different classroom set up for school age and yes it does get crowded. It gets loud," explained Theresa Smithson, the day care`s owner. The Bald Knob Sewer and Water Department has been working to restore the sewer line. "When the pipe crushed it didn`t have anywhere else to go, so it just filled up the school," said Earnest Storey, superintendent at the water department. When the problem started, the department looked to for a manhole to get inside and fix it. But the one they found was paved over, and the one that they needed, didn`t exist. "Why it happened, ok, I don`t know, 25 -26 years ago. This is what we found and this is what we have to do about it now," Storey explained. And the pipes are 25 years old. So, now the city is spending around $6,000 to replace the concrete pipe with plastic. "Eventually, it would have become a sinkhole," Storey said. "So, it`s better we found it now than later." The Bald Knob Sewer Deparment says the school will have sewer by Monday, so the kids will be returning to school then. But it will still take a while before the entire job is completed.