BOWLING GREEN, Ohio, – Two operators from Northwestern Water and Sewer District (The District) will be using their licensed expertise in water and wastewater systems to assist those devastated by the recent hurricane that struck the Bahamas. The pair will head down to this area to help repair the infrastructure as a part of Operators Without Boarders, a non-profit organization that assists with post-disaster recovery for water and wastewater utilities in the Caribbean.
Ohio EPA licensed operators Todd Saums and Tom McGrain will use their skills and expertise to help with any and all tasks related to troubleshooting and repairing the water and wastewater system that were damaged by Hurricane Dorian in September. They left Sunday, November 10th and will return Monday, November 18th.
According to Saums, “It’s taken time to evaluate the needs of the infrastructure. We still don’t know what condition the area will be in or what our mission is, other than to help restore proper water and wastewater services.” The duo will be joining fellow wastewater operators from Canada. So far, they are the only operators from the United States to offer their services.
Fellow operators and members of the Ohio Water Environment Association (OWEA) have raised money to fund their trip.