Sewage floods Valdese business, sparks dispute over town's responsibility
Debbie Huffman Dance Academy must replace its dance floor
The Debbie Huffman Dance Academy team found themselves doing a different kind of tango: hauling buckets of sewage off the dance floor.
On Wednesday, Feb. 12, a grease blockage in a Town of Valdese sewer line caused the backup of sewage to cover the dance academy’s bathroom floor and into the dance studio.
Huffman, the business owner and renter of the building on Main Street, talked about the issue Feb. 26 on the academy’s Facebook page.
Cleaning up of the sewage spillage at Debbie Huffman Dance Academy.
“During the city’s effort to unblock the sewer lines on Main Street, sewage began to back up in our bathroom and rapidly continued to cover 3/4 of our wooden dance floor. Our DHDA staff worked for 3 hours using every towel, rug, and mop, trying to contain the sewage to the bathroom. Sewage was also running down the sidewalk. Now the City of Valdese is denying our claim to damages. This just isn’t right. Is it not the city’s job to maintain the sewer system?”
During the Valdese Town Council meeting this past Monday, the council discussed the matter. The insurance claim filed by the Town of Valdese was denied citing a third party (whoever caused the grease blockage) — not the town — was at fault.
THE TOWN’S PERSPECTIVE
Interim Town Manager Bo Weichel explained the insurance denial and a different perspective in an email he sent to the town council and mayor. He also addressed the problem during the council’s March 3 meeting.
Weichel said public works responded immediately once the blockage was reported after regular hours. The crew identified the problem — a grease buildup in their sewer system — and began making repairs.
“The next morning, I filed an insurance claim under the assumption that the Town might be liable for the backup — despite the fact that we did not cause the grease accumulation. The NCLM (North Carolina League of Municipalities) responded promptly, conducted a site visit, and, after a thorough investigation, denied the claim,” Weichel wrote in the email. “The denial was based on an NC general statute that exempts public entities from liability for sewer blockages caused by external sources.”
Sewage flooded the bathroom at Debbie Huffman Dance Academy.
He emphasized that the town itself did not deny Huffman’s claim, but rather it was the insurance company denying the claim based on state statute. The business then filed the same claim to its insurance adjuster.
“The only scenario in which the Town would be responsible is if we had been performing work in that area prior to the blockage, which was not the case. To confirm, the insurance adjuster reviewed our work logs and orders, which showed no recent work in that location.”
Weichel confirmed that the neighboring business, Next Level Training, was also flooded but has not contacted him.
PROFESSIONAL RESTORATION NEEDED
While crews were trying to find the blockage, the sewage from the bathroom quickly flooded into the business. Staff used over two dozen throw rugs and beach towels to control the filthy overflow. They wrung out the sewage into buckets, filling about a dozen 5-gallon buckets, Huffman said.
She contracted with Servpro, a cleaning and restoration company, to clean the sewage. The itemized bill is around $42,695.
The damaged flooring of the Debbie Huffman Dance Academy being removed.
Now, the bamboo floor of the dance academy will need to be demolished. Her flooring contractor said he hopes to complete the replacement by the end of March. She is currently getting an estimate for the floor installation.
She and her landlord have the same insurance provider, and Huffman is awaiting confirmation on what will be covered. Each is responsible for their respective share of the damages.
“It’s been an experience, but I don’t think the City of Valdese does a very good job with their sewer lines because other people have had problems with it before,” she said. “There’s been a smell of sewage in the downtown area off and on for a while.”
In conversations with First Citizens Bank, Huffman learned the bank has been experiencing sewage issues since July due to tree roots infiltrating its pipes.
The town is letting the academy use Old Rock School when available for free until dance classes can resume at their location. This has impacted the kids’ dance schedules and parents as well.
“Things have been really stressful,” Huffman said. “It is just a mess that needs to be resolved ASAP.”
Saydie Bean is the municipal and courts reporter. She may be reached at 828-445-8595, ext. 2011, or saydie@thepaper.media.
