This is an update from the City of Oakridge regarding the Sanitary Sewer Overflow on 6/3/26 which prompted the City to declare an emergency related to this incident.
New information:
The sewer leak was located north of Highway 58, between the Orchid Clinic and the A&W/Subway building. A large clog in the sewer line forced untreated sewage into an old overflow bypass that led to the storm water system. This clog was released and sewage is now flowing normally through the pipe. This overflow bypass is a legacy feature from generations (decades) ago and is no longer needed. It was removed and concrete caps were put in place to seal the sewer pipe in that area to make sure this can’t happen again. The City will conduct daily E. coli testing upstream and downstream of the storm water outfall at the end of Fairy Glen Drive until testing shows normal levels. Please continue to respect the marked closure signs along the river near the outfall area. On the evening of 6/3/26, the Oakridge City Council approved a declaration of emergency yesterday that can help the City access additional support and resources during the repair process.
What about water?
City drinking water was not affected and is safe to use. Now that we know the location and cause of the leak, we can confirm no wells were affected by the leak.
What can we do to avoid this in the future?
Aging infrastructure naturally comes with challenges, but it will help if we all avoid flushing wipes (even if the package claims they are flushable), feminine products or other items not intended to be flushed. The only thing that should go down your toilet are the Three Ps: pee, poop and toilet paper.
Future updates:
Future updates will be shared on the City of Oakridge’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/OakridgeOR
We would like to thank our outstanding Public Works team for their quick response yesterday and their ongoing work to make repairs and ensure our systems function as needed. Many thanks also to all of our residents for their patience and cooperation as we work on fixing this problem.