Transcona CC Sues City of Winnipeg for Sewer Backup

The club claims the Canadian city caused $560,000 in damage to the property after a heavy rainfall impaired the club’s sewer line.

Transcona Country Club in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada is suing the City of Winnipeg for a sewer backup, the Winnipeg Free Press reported.

Transcona claims the backup cost the club $560,000 in damage when the system surged with rainwater and damaged the club’s sewer line, leading it to back up into the basement.

Both the club and the Transcona Lions Club filed the statement, alleging the city did not control water service between May 29 and June 15, 2010. In late May 2010, more than three inches of rain hit Winnipeg over one weekend and over 350 homes had water backup, the Free Press reported.

According to the club, the city did not turn off the water surface to the property to limit the amount of damage. No statement of defense has been filed.

Some neighborhoods in Winnipeg have combined sewers with one pipe carrying wastewater and runoff from precipitation that are normally run to a wastewater treatment plant. However, heavy rain can cause the systems to overload and cause rainwater and wastewater to back up into homes, the Free Press reported.

The City of Winnipeg’s website says residents and businesses can take out insurance policies for sewer backup, but the city is “not responsible for sewer backup unless we have been negligent,” the Free Press reported.

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