BELLE — Belle city officials are continuing efforts to address damage to the city’s sewer infrastructure and locate a separate water line leak following an inspection of underground lines along Lenoff Drive.

During the Oct. 13 meeting of the Belle Board of Aldermen, Mayor James (Pudd) Mitchell reported that an inspection conducted by public works personnel from the city of Hermann City identified two locations where a boring crew had struck a sewer pipe, along with two locations where groundwater was entering the sewer system.

“The pipe had been hit by the bore crew in two places,” Mitchell told aldermen. “Then there was two lines that was leaking groundwater into our sewer.”

The city approved payment of $645.86 to Hermann for the inspection, which involved running a camera through the sewer line to determine the source of the problems.

Mitchell said groundwater infiltration was identified near the properties of two residents along the affected area. He emphasized that the water entering the sewer system was groundwater rather than treated drinking water.

“It’s groundwater; it’s not drinking water,” Mitchell said.

According to Mitchell, Keith Fork had received the inspection information and video and indicated the problems would be addressed. However, the city had not yet received a final report concerning the inspection.

“But it’ll be on DNR to get back with you guys,” Mitchell said, referring to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. “I don’t know what they’re going to do. I know it’s going to have to be fixed. I know that.”

Mitchell explained that repairing the infiltration problems would require excavation to determine precisely where groundwater was entering the lines and what repairs would be necessary.

In addition to the sewer concerns, city crews are attempting to locate a separate water line leak in the same general area.

Mitchell said the suspected leak was somewhere between a residential property and the Dollar General store. He indicated that the problem could be associated with a location where a boring crew previously damaged a water line.

“We still got to find that leak,” Mitchell said.

He said crews would likely return to the area of the previous repair to determine whether a fitting had loosened after the excavation was backfilled. The mayor acknowledged that the city had not yet resumed excavation because crews had been occupied with other municipal work. The inspection also clarified that the groundwater entering the sewer system was a separate issue from the city’s water distribution leak.

Although officials discussed the need for additional excavation and repairs, no timetable for completing the work or estimated repair cost was announced during the meeting.

The city will continue working to locate the water leak and address the sewer line problems as additional information becomes available.