(AP) -- Officials say about 7 million of gallons of raw sewage has spilled into the French Broad River near Asheville after a pump failed at a treatment plant.
Workers with the Metropolitan Sewerage District stopped the leak around 3 p.m. Tuesday. Officials say a connecting piece failed on a pump that was being replaced around 8 a.m., causing the spill that pumped about 1 million gallons of raw sewage an hour into the river.
Workers pumped out about 30 feet of water to get to the problem. The district notified the state Water Quality Division and the town of Woodfin. The station is about a mile upstream from a popular recreation area for kayakers. The French Broad riverkeeper recommended that people stay out of the river for at least 48 hours.