BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — If you've been on Broadway near Bailey Avenue recently, you may have noticed a strong odor coming from Engine 22 on Buffalo's East Side.
"I was smelling this awful smell for a while and I couldn't figure out what was going on either," Jessica Falasa said.
Falasa has lived off of Broadway for years. She had no idea the smell was from raw sewage until Tuesday.
"I was wondering why I smelled it for the longest time now and I just hope to God they get to the bottom of this," Falasa said.
The raw sewage is spilling out from a pipe running alongside Engine 22. A store owner from across the street said he smells it quite often.
Vinny Ventresca, the president of Buffalo Professional Firefighter Local 282 Union, said that this issue has been happening for two months. 7 News' Kristen Mirand reached out to the city to see what is being done about this problem. A city spokesperson said crews are in the process of repairing a lateral sewer line to the main line and are "attempting to expedite the work." The Department of Public Works said work is scheduled to begin this week on permanent repairs at Engine 22.
"I'm worried you know the public health aspect of sewage going into the street," Fillmore District Council Member Mitch Nowakowski said.
He said was never made aware of this issue and only learned about it Tuesday. He said he immediately started making calls.
"And I moved swiftly because I'm not going to put up with it," Nowakowski said, "I need to have this information to me pronto and for it to go on so long and for there not be an email or even a correspondence to me that it happened is not acceptable."
Still, Falasa said this is a serious matter and is upset to see this has been happening in her neighborhood for so long.
"Hopefully they get it taken care of because you know what? Our community does not deserve this," she said.
