In the Birchwood pocket of Perkins Township, just outside Sandusky, a good rainstorm now comes with a bad ritual: watching the drains and bracing for the smell. Residents say repeated sewer and stormwater backups have soaked basements, ruined finishes, and left families on edge every time the forecast darkens. Neighbors describe warped flooring, lingering sewage odors, and repair bills that turn each heavy shower into a small household emergency. The headaches have pushed residents to demand county or township action to stop what they argue is a recurring, preventable mess.
Backups Leave Homes Flooded and Wallets Drained
Homeowner Mike Smith told a reporter that his Birchwood Drive house has taken on as much as two feet of water in the basement and six to eight inches on the second floor during serious storms, a flooding pattern he says has already cost him roughly $26,000 out of pocket for a single cleanup. Smith shared an invoice listing about $15,000 for equipment intended to shield his home from future backups. Neighbors say a common culprit is sump pumps and foundation drains that empty into the main drain, which then overloads when downpours hit. As News 5 Cleveland reported, residents say the problem has become a daily worry whenever it rains.
Who Is Actually in Charge of the Water System?
According to the Erie County Water Division, the county runs a "Perkins" water district that buys treated water from Sandusky and Huron, then moves it through pump stations, storage tanks, and hundreds of miles of mains that serve Perkins Township. That county role is one reason neighbors say they expected Erie County to step up on long-term fixes to keep sewage out of their basements. Since the county oversees distribution, residents argue, it raises the question of whether county government should help pay to stop the recurring damage.
Officials Trade Blame While County Promises a Reply
Perkins Township officials told a reporter that Erie County is responsible for water and sewer service in the neighborhood, while Erie County officials told the same outlet that a more detailed response would come within a few days, according to News 5 Cleveland. Neighbors say they have been bounced from office to office as damage continues and repair costs climb. That back-and-forth has left homeowners unsure who, if anyone, will help pay to reroute sump discharges or install backflow protection.
How Sump Pumps and Illegal Ties Overwhelm Sewers
Plumbing and public works experts say that sump pumps, foundation drains, and roof downspouts tied into sanitary sewer lines can dump large volumes of clean stormwater into pipes that are meant only for sewage, a problem known as inflow and infiltration that can overwhelm a system during heavy rain. Ohio EPA guidance prohibits connecting rainwater drains to sanitary sewers and recommends removing illegal ties, according to the Ohio EPA, and federal EPA materials note that removing I&I is a common step in preventing sewer backups. Some municipalities run inspection programs or cost-sharing plans to remove private inflow sources and add backflow devices, but residents say those fixes can be technically complicated and expensive for individual homeowners.
Neighbors Want a Real Plan, Not Another Bill
Residents argue it is not fair for families to shoulder thousands of dollars in retrofit costs while the broader system shows signs of strain. They point out that the neighborhood also faced a boil advisory in late May after a Columbus Avenue water-main break, a separate local report noted, which added to concerns about the reliability of local infrastructure. For now, neighbors say they plan to keep pressing township trustees and county officials for a clear timeline and cost-sharing plan to keep the next storm from once again washing through their homes.
As this story continues, local leaders and county utilities face growing pressure to spell out who will pay for repairs and how the area will be protected before the next round of heavy rain hits.
